as/ 



THE 



THREE MRS. JUDSONS, 

THE CELEBRATED 



FEMALE MISSIONARIES. 



A NEW AND CAREFULLY REVISED EDITION. 

Bt CECIL B. HARTLEY. 

f) 



ILLUSTRATED WITH STEEL PORTRAITS. 



PHILADELPHIA: 
JOHN E. POTTER AND COMPANY, 

617 Sansom Street. 

/S6 3 




Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1863, fojr 
JOHN E. POTTER, 

Z& the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for th« 

Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 



PREFACE. 



It is one of the most striking instances of modern progress 
that the missions of women are beginning to be so clearly 
recognized It is not long, since a woman who dared to step 
beyond the circle of home and social duties was looked upon 
with timid wonder by her own sex, and disapprobation by the 
other; but in this more enlightened age her usefulness is 
readily acknowledged. 

England holds up her Florence Nightingale, that courageous, 
noble woman, whose name is heard with love and reverence 
through the whole civilized world. Can we not, in America, 
point out our bright stars in the galaxy of heroines ? Florence 
Nightingale went to minister to the bodily wants of men en- 
gaged in war, and whose trade was bloodshed. Our heroines, 
the Mrs. Judsons, went to minister to the sinking souls of 
heathens, who repaid their efforts, in many instances, by cruel 
persecution. Florence Nightingale went amongst her own 
countrymen, into a civilized land. The Mrs. Judsons went to 
a far-distant shore, to study an unknown tongue, to teach those 
whose mere earthly claim upon them was nothing. 

The names of those amongst women, who, standing bravely 

8 



4 



PREFACE. 



forth, have taken prominent places in the missionary ranks, and 
who are increasing every year, must all give place to Mrs. Ann 
Judson, who alone can claim the first rank as pioneer of her 
sex in America ; the first who resolved to leave her home here 
to minister to the heathen abroad. 

In my pleasant task of writing the lives of the Mrs. Jud- 
sons, I am indebted, for valuable information, to the Lives of 
the Mrs. Judsons by J. B. Knowles and Fanny Forester, and 
Wayland's interesting Memoirs of Dr. Judson. 

Care has been taken in the present volume to place the do- 
mestic life of the Mrs. Judsons, as much as was practicable, 
before the reader, and to show, as far as possible, the result of 
their individual labors. They stood as high for conjugal and 
maternal loveliness and devotedness as they did in their more 
public character as missionaries. 

If one young girl lay aside our little volume, conscious of 
feeling a higher love for Christian duty, and greater emulation 
to fulfill her own mission, be it public or private, at home or 
abroad, the author will be more than repaid for any efforts 
made in writing these memoirs. 



CONTENTS. 



Sketch of Life of Key. Adoniram Judson, D.D 9 

LIFE OF MRS. ANN H. JUDSON. 
CHAPTER I. 

Birth — Parentage — Education, and Conversion M 25 

CHAPTER II. 

Marriage, and Voyage to India — Change of religious sentiments — Ar- 
rival at Calcutta — Difficulties with government — Voyage to Isle of 
France — Death of Mrs. Newell — Voyage to Rangoon 30 

CHAPTER III. 

Description of the Burman Empire, and the Burmese religion 45 

CHAPTER IV. 



Learning the Language — Visit to the Viceroy's wife — Mrs. Judson's 
illness — Voyage to Madras — Return to Rangoon — Birth and death 
of a son — Mr. Judson's illness — Arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Hough at 
Rangoon — Mr. Judson leaves Rangoon — Trouble — Mr. and Mrs. 
Hough leave Rangoon — Mrs. Judson's fortitude — Return of Mr. 
Judson • 65 



6 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER V. 

PAG* 

Erection of a zayat — Conversion and baptism of a native — Death of 
Mr, Wheelock — Messrs. Judson and Colman start to visit Ava 81 



CHAPTER VI 

Visit to Ava — Return to Rangoon — First female convert baptized— 



Mrs. Judson's illness — Mr. and Mrs. Judson sail for Bengal •••• 90 

CHAPTER VII. 

Return to Rangoon — Mrs. Judson's renewed illness — Voyage to Eng- 
land — Visits in England and America — Return to India 98 

CHAPTER VIII. 

Messrs. Judson and Price visit Ava — Return to Rangoon — Mrs. Jud- 
son's arrival — Removal to Ava 115 

CHAPTER IX. 

War in Burmah — Mrs. Judson's account of the missionaries' sufferings 
—Tribute to Mrs. Judson from prisoners. 124 

CHAPTER X. 

Death of Mrs. Judson and her daughter , 176 



LIFE OF MRS. SARAH B. JUDSON. 
CHAPTER I. 

Birth — Parentage, and Early Life 191 



CHAPTER II. 

Profession of religion — Poetry on death of Colman — Marriage— De- 
parture for India , 195 



CONTENTS. 7 

CHAPTEE III. 

PAGE 

Removal to Maulmain — First peril in their new home — Removal to 
Tavoy — Missionary labors — Interest in the Karens 204 

CHAPTER IV. 
Death of the first born 211 

CHAPTER V. 

Revolt at Tavoy — Birth and death of second son........... 215 

CHAPTER VI. 

Illness of Mrs. Boardman — Mr. Boardman's failing health 222 

CHAPTER VII. 
Death of Mr. Boardman 227 

CHAPTER VIII. 

The widow Missionary 240 

CHAPTER IX. 

Marriage to Mr. Judson — Declining health — Literary labors — Separa- 
tion from her son 248 

CHAPTER X 

Mr. Judson's illness • 256 

• CHAPTER XI. 

A year of trial 261 

CHAPTER XII. 

Mr. and Mrs. Judson, and children leave India — Death of Mrs. Jud- 
son 267 



8 CONTENTS. 

LIFE OF MRS. EMILY C. JUDSOK 
CHAPTER I. 

PAGE 

Birth — Early life — Literary career — Marriage and departure for India 
— Farewell to Alderbrook 274 

CHAPTER II. 

Arrival in India — Literary labors — Poem written on the birth of a 
daughter — Domestic life 282 

CHAPTER III. 

Mrs. Judson's illness — Dr. Judson's death — Mrs. Judson's return to 
America — Death — Poems ••••••••••••••••••• 390 



SKETCH 



OP THE 

LIFE OF REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D.D. 



Before entering upon the memoirs of the three distin- 
guished women, whose career of usefulness forms the subject 
of this volume, let me give a short sketch of the Rev. Dr. Jud- 
son, their husband, the leader in the self-sacrificing work to 
which they devoted their lives, and the pioneer in that extended 
field of Missionary labor, the Burman Empire. 

Adoniram Judson, the eldest son of Adoniram and Abigail 
Judson, was born in Maiden, Massachusetts, August 9th, 1788. 
His father, the Bev. Adoniram Judson, was pastor of different 
Congregational churches until the year 1817, when his views 
upon the subject of baptism having changed, he left the min- 
istry. He died at Scituate, in 1826, at the advanced age of 
seventy-six. 

Adoniram, the subject of the present memoir, gave, at a 
very early age, promise of great talent, having a powerful and 
quick intellect, astonishing perseverance, and a great love of 
study. When only three years old, his mother taught him to 
read, and this power once acquired, he soon gave evidence of 
an intense love for study. His father, though seeking no high 
office for himself, was proud of the talents developed in his 
children, and constantly stimulated his son to further efforts, by 
promises of future fame. 

9 



10 



SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF 



You are a very acute boy, Adoniram," he said to him, on 
one occasion, " and I expect you to become a great man/' Mr. 
Judson himself owned, later in life, that all his early dreams 
were stimulated by this hope for future fame, yet in the midst 
of these ambitious soarings, into his heart crept the Scripture 
passage : 

" Not unto us, not unto us, but to Thy name be the glory/' 
Even then, he adds, he feared to look further into his own 

heart, lest he should find it rebellious against the injunction. 

He hoped to be a religious and God-fearing man, but his father 

said he should become a great man, and he was resolved to fulfill 

the prophecy. 

His career at school was marked by great love of study, 
perseverance, and most rapid progress in every task. In math- 
ematics and the classics his proficiency was the subject of com- 
mendation from all his instructors, and admiration with his 
schoolmates. 

At sixteen years of age, Mr. Judson entered Brown Univer- 
sity, then Providence College, one year in advance. His ambi- 
tion here stood him in good stead. Throughout the college he 
was distinguished for his closely studious habits, his perfection 
in every exercise, and his punctual attendance in every class. 
A letter written during his collegiate term, by the late Rev. 
Dr. Messer, to his father, speaks in the highest terms of his 
" uniform propriety of conduct, as well as an intense applica- 
tion to study 

While he was in college, French infidelity swept like a nox- 
ious blast over the land. In the class above the young Adon- 
iram,' was a young man of great talent, and prepossessing man- 
ners, named E . He was a confirmed Deist. A warm 

attachment existed between Judson and E , and in a short 

time, the future missionary was, professedly, as great an unbe- 
liever as his friend. Together they discussed future worldly 
prospects, and argued on the most favorable profession for the 
attainment of fame. Mr. Judson graduated Bachelor of Arts 
in September, 1807, receiving for commencement the highest 
appointment, an English oration, with the valedictory addresses, 



REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D. D. 



11 



proving him, in the opinion of his instructors, the first scholar 
in his class. 

During his college course he kept school, through the vaca- 
tions, and in 1807 he opened a private school in Plymouth. 
During the year 1808, he published two works for schools, 
his " Elements of English Grammar/' and " The Young 
Lady's Arithmetic/' both of which were highly commended by 
the press, and also in private letters by teachers. 

In 1808 he closed the school in Plymouth, and made a tour 
through the Northern States. During this trip, he heard of 

the death of his college friend, E , the Deist, and scoffer at 

religion. A great revulsion of feeling followed this announce- 
ment, and humbled, saddened, feeling deeply how erroneous 
had been his former views, Judson returned to his home, 
deeply impressed with the necessity of religion for himself. 
He taught school in Boston for a short time after his return, 
and then entered the Theological Seminary at Andover, com- 
mencing his course, as in his previous entrance in college, a 
year in advance. On the 28th of May, 1809, after seven 
months spent in the college, he made a public profession of 
religion, and joined the church of which his father was then 
pastor, the Third Congregational Church in Plymouth. It 
was during his residence in Andover College, that he first began 
to turn his thoughts to that great work he afterwards so faith- 
fully undertook, the subject of Foreign Missions. His own 
letter, written to Dr. Chapin, whilst prosecuting his missionary 
labors, gives so full an account of his views upon the subject 
of missions, that I quote it entire. 

TO THE REV. DR. CHAPIN, PRESIDENT OF COLUMBIAN COLLEGE, 
WASHINGTON. 

Matjlmain, December 18, 1837. 

Very dear Brother : Yours of March 21st I have re- 
ceived with great pleasure, and shall be glad to answer your 
inquiries, and give you any information in my power. 

I had addressed a letter to brother Eice, dated July 13 



12 



SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF 



1836, which could not, however, have reached him before 1ms 
death. As that letter contains considerable information which 
has a bearing on the subject of your inquiries, I will first 
transcribe it, and chen subjoin remarks on some other points. 
" My dear brother Rice : You ask me to give you some 
account of my first missionary impressions, and those of 
my earliest associates. Mine were occasioned by reading 
Buchanan's ' Star in the East/ in the year 1809, at the An- 
dover Theological Seminary. Though I do not now consider 
that sermon as peculiarly excellent, it produced a very power- 
ful effect on my mind. For some days I was unable to attend 
to the studies of my class, and spent my time in wondering at 
my past stupidity, depicting the most romantic scenes in mis- 
sionary life, and roving about the college rooms, declaiming 
on the subject of missions. My views were very incorrect, 
and my feelings extravagant ; but yet I have always felt 
thankful to God for bringing me into that state of excitement, 
which was, perhaps, necessary, in the first instance, to enable 
me to break the strong attachment I felt to home and country, 
and to endure the thought of abandoning all my wonted pur- 
suits and animating prospects. That excitement soon passed 
away ; but it left a strong desire to prosecute my inquiries, and 
ascertain the path of duty. It was during a solitary walk in 
the woods behind the college, while meditating and praying on 
the subject, and feeling half inclined to give it up, that the 
command of Christ, 1 Go into all the world, and preach the 
gospel to every creature/ was presented to my mind with 
such clearness and power, that I came to a full decision, and 
though great difficulties appeared in my way, resolved to obey 
the command at all events. But, at that period, no provision 
had been made in America for a foreign mission, and for 
several months, after reading Buchanan, I found none among 
the students who viewed the subject as I did, and no minister 
in the place or neighborhood who gave me any encouragement; 
and I thought that I should be under the necessity of going to 
England and placing myself under foreign patronage. 

" My earliest missionary associate was Nott ; who, though he 



REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D.D. 



13 



had recently entered the seminary, (in the early part of 1810,) 
was a member of the same class with myself. He had con- 
sidered the subject for several months, but had not fully made 
up his mind. About the same time, Mills, Richards, and 
others joined the seminary from Williams College, where they 
had, for some time, been in the habit of meeting for prayer 
and conversation on the subject of missions ; but they entered 
the junior class, and had several years of theological study be- 
fore them. You were of the same standing, but from some 
engagement, (a school, I believe,) did not arrive so soon, 
though you ultimately finished your course before the others, 
and joined the first party that embarked. 

" Newell was the next accession from my own class. As to 
Hall, he was preaching at Woodbury, Connecticut. I heard 
that he once thought favorably of missions, and wrote him a 
short letter. He had just received a call to settle in that 
place, and was deliberating whether it was his duty to accept 
it or not, when the letter was put into his hand. He instantly 
came to a decision, and the next rising sun saw him on the 
way to Andover. I think that he arrived about the time of 
the meeting of the General Association of Ministers at Brad- 
ford, in the summer of 1810. I do not, however, recollect 
him present at that meeting, nor was his name attached to 
the paper which we presented to the association, and which 
was originally signed by Nott, Newell, Mills, Rice, Richards, 
and myself, though, at the suggestion of Dr. Spring, your 
name and Richards's, which happened to stand last, were 
struck off, for fear of alarming the association with too large a 
number. 

" I have ever thought that the providence of God was con- 
spicuously manifested in bringing us all together, from differ- 
ent and distant parts. Some of us had been considering the 
subject of missions for a long time, and some but recently. 
Some, and indeed the greater part, had thought chiefly of 
domestic missions, and efforts among the neighboring tribes of 
Indians, without contemplating abandonment of country, and 
devotement for life. The reading and reflection of others 



14 



SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF 



had led them in a different way ; and when we all met at tne 
same seminary, and came to a mutual understanding on the 
ground of foreign missions and missions for life, the subject 
assumed in our minds such an overwhelming importance and 
awful solemnity, as bound us to one another, and to our pur- 
pose, more firmly than ever. How evident it is that the Spirit 
of God had been operating in different places, and upon differ- 
ent individuals, preparing the way for those movements which 
have since pervaded the American churches, and will continue 
to increase until the kingdoms of this world become the king- 
doms of our Lord and of his Anointed V* 

LETTER TO HIS PARENTS. 

Andover, June 29, 1810. 

Hon. Parents : The following is a copy of the letter 
which I directed to Dr. Bogue : — 

Divinity College, Andover, Mass., April, 1810. 

Rev. Sir : I have considered the subject of missions nearly 
a year, and have found my mind gradually tending to a deep 
conviction that it is my duty personally to engage in this ser- 
vice. Several of my brethren of this college may finally unite 
with me in my present resolution. On their, as well as my 
own behalf, I take the liberty of addressing you this letter. 
My object is to obtain information on certain points — whether 
there is, at present, such a call for missionaries in India, Tar- 
tary, or any part of the eastern continent, as will induce the 
directors of the London Missionary Society to engage new mis- 
sionaries ; whether two or three young, unmarried men, having 
received a liberal education, and resided two years in this Di- 
vinity School, wishing to serve their Saviour in a heathen land, 
and, indeed, susceptible of a " passion for missions" — whether 
such young men, arriving in England next spring, with full 
recommendations from the first Christian characters in this 
country, may expect to be received on probation by the direc- 
tors, and placed at the seminary in Gosport, if that be judged 



REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D.D. 



15 



expedient ; and whether, provided they give satisfaction as to 
their fitness to undertake the work, all their necessary expenses 
after arriving in England shall be defrayed from the funds of 
the society, which funds will, it is hoped, be ultimately reim- 
bursed by supplies from the American churches. 

We have consulted our professors on this subject, particu- 
larly Dr. Griffin, professor of oratory. He intends writing to 
several in England, and perhaps to Dr. Bogue. But his en- 
gagements being such as will prevent his writing at present, 
and wishing myself to receive a letter from you immediately , 
containing the desired information, I have written myself. I 
close with an earnest request that you will please transmit me 
an answer as soon as possible, and a prayer that your answer 
may be favorable to my most ardent wishes. 

(Signed,) Adoniram Jtjdson, Jr. 

Rev. Dr. Bogue, Gosport, England. 

P. S. I shall deem it a favor if you do not confine your re- 
marks to the points which I have proposed, but are pleased to 
give such general information and advice as you may think 
will be useful to me and my brethren. 

. The following is a copy of the petition laid before the. Gen- 
eral Association, this week convened in Bradford, composed 
of delegates from several Associations in this State, and from 
the General Associations of New Hampshire and Connecticut : 

The undersigned, members of the Divinity College, respect- 
fully request the attention of their reverend fathers, convened 
in the General Association at Bradford, to the following state- 
ment and inquiries : — % 

They beg leave to state that their minds have been long im- 
pressed with the duty and importance of personally attempting 
a mission to the heathen ; that the impressions on their minds 
have induced a serious, and, as they trust, a prayerful consid- 
eration of the subject in its various attitudes, particularly in 
relation to the probable success and the difficulties attending 



16 



SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF 



such an attempt ; and that, after examining all the information 
which they can obtain, they consider themselves as devoted to 
this work for life, whenever God, in his providence, shall open 
the way. 

They now offer the following inquiries, on which they solicit 
the opinion and advice of this association : Whether, with their 
present views and feelings, they ought to renounce the object 
of missions, as either visionary or impracticable ; if not, whether 
they ought to direct their attention to the eastern or the western 
world ; whether they may expect patronage and support from 
a missionary society in this country, or must commit them- 
selves to the direction of a European society ; and what pre- 
paratory measures they ought to take, previous to actual en- 
gagement. 

The undersigned, feeling their youth and inexperience, look 
up to their fathers in the church, and respectfully solicit their 
advice, direction, and prayers. 

Signed, Adoniram J udson, Jr. 

Samuel Mott, Jr. 
Samuel J. Mills. 
Samuel Newell. 

The petition quoted in the preceding letter was referred by 
the General Association of Massachusetts to a committee con- 
sisting of Rev. Messrs. Spring, Worcester, and Hale. The 
following report was made the next day by this committee, and 
unanimously adopted : 

The committee, to whom was referred the request of the 
young gentlemen, members of the Divinity College, for advice 
relative to missions to the heathen, beg leave to submit the fol- 
lowing report : — 

The object of missions to the heathen cannot but be re- 
garded, by the friends of the Redeemer, as vastly interesting 
and important. It deserves the most serious attention of all 
who wish well to the best interests of mankind, and especially 
of those who devote themselves to the service of God, in the 
kingdom of his Son, under the impression of the special direc- 



REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D.D. 



17 



tion, " Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every 
creature." The state of their minds, modestly expressed by 
the theological students who have presented themselves before 
this body, and the testimonies received respecting them, .are 
such as deeply to impress the conviction that they ought not 
\ ' to renounce the object of missions," but sacredly to cherish 
11 their present views" in relation to that object : and it is sub- 
mitted whether the peculiar and abiding impressions, by which 
they are influenced, ought not to be gratefully recognized as a 
divine intimation of something good and great in relation to 
the propagation of the gospel, and calling for correspondent 
attention and exertions. 
Therefore,— 

Voted, That there be instituted, by this General Association, 
a Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, for the pur- 
pose of devising ways and means, and adopting and prosecut- 
ing measures, for promoting the spread of the gospel in heathen 
lands. 

Voted, That the said Board of Commissioners consist of nine 
members, all of them, in the first instance, chosen by this As- 
sociation ; and afterwards, annually, five of them by this body, 
and four of them by the General Association of Connecticut. 
Provided, however, that, if the General Association of Con- 
necticut do not choose to unite in this object, the annual elec- 
tion of all the commissioners shall be by this General Associa- 
tion. 

It is understood that the Board of Commissioners, here con- 
templated, will adopt their own form of organization, and their 
own rules and regulations. 

Voted, That, fervently commending them to the grace of 
God, we advise the young gentlemen, whose request is before 
us, in the way of earnest prayer and diligent attention to 
suitable studies and means of information, and putting them- 
selves under the patronage and direction of the Board of Com- 
missioners for Foreign Missions, humbly to wait the openings 
and guidance of Providence in respect to their great and excel- 
lent design. 
2 



18 



SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF 



A subsequent meeting was afterwards held by the General 
Association, and the subject of Foreign Missions, with the pe- 
tition quoted above, more fully discussed. It was then decided 
to attempt an arrangement with the English Missionary So- 
ciety, to join with them in their efforts for diffusing Chris- 
tianity amongst the heathen, and Mr. Judson was appointed 
to go to England to ascertain whether such an arrangement was 
practicable. His letter of instructions was as follows : 

LETTER OF INSTRUCTIONS FROM THE PRUDENTIAL COMMIT- 
TEE TO MR. JUDSON. 

Mr. Adoniram Judson : — As you and your brethren, 
Samuel Newell, Samuel Nott, and Gordon Hall, have professed 
to hold yourselves sacredly devoted to the service of Christ, in 
some part or parts of the heathen world, as in divine provi- 
dence a door may be opened to you, and as, with reference 
to this important object, you have chosen to place yourselves 
under the superintendence and direction of the American 
Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, the Prudential 
Committee of the said board, after obtaining satisfaction in re- 
gard to your qualifications severally for the contemplated ser- 
vice, and seriously consulting on the subject at large, have 
judged it advisable to have a full and distinct understanding 
with the directors of the London Missionary Society, in rela- 
tion to the general object. For this purpose they have deter- 
mined on sending you, dear sir, to England, under the follow- 
ing instructions : — 

Agreeably to arrangements made, you will sail for England 
in the ship Packet, and on your arrival at her port of destina- 
tion, you will proceed, as soon as convenient, to London, and 
deliver your letter of introduction to the Rev. George Burder, 
secretary of the London Missionary Society. Mr. Burder, we 
doubt not, will receive you with Christian courtesy, and from 
him, and his brethren of the Board of Directors, you will 
receive such notices as will enable you to accomplish, in the 
best manner, the design now in view. A principal object of 



REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D. D. 



19 



your attention will be to ascertain, as distinctly as possible, 
whether any and what arrangements can be made for a concert 
of measures, in relation to missions, between the American 
Board of Commissioners and the London Missionary Society : 
particularly whether, if circumstances should render it desi- 
rable, you and your brethren can be supported in missionary 
service for any time by the London funds, without committing 
yourselves wholly and finally to the direction of the London 
society ; or whether it may be in any case consistent for the 
mission to be supported partly by them and partly by us ; and 
if so, under whose direction it must be held. On these points 
you will possess yourself of the views of the directors of the 
London society, and receive their propositions for our consid- 
eration. You will also, during your stay in England, avail 
yourself of your opportunities and advantages for obtaining 
ample and correct information relating to missionary fields, the 
requisite preparations for missionary services, the most eligible 
methods of executing missions, and generally to whatever may 
be conducive to the missionary interest ; and the most impor- 
tant parts of such information as you may obtain you will com- 
mit to writing for the use of the American Board. 

As it is not expected that you will be at your own charge in 
this engagement, you will keep a full account of your expendi- 
tures, for adjustment on your return. 

We commend you, dear brother, to the providence and the 
grace of God, with fervent prayers for your safety, your suc- 
cess, and your happiness. In behalf of the Prudential Com- 
mittee of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign 
Missions, 

Yours, dear brother, with great affection. 

Samuel Worcester. 

FROM THE REV. DR. WORCESTER, TO THE REV. GEORGE 

BURDER. 

Salem, January 3d, 1811. 

Rev. and dear Sir : — Enclosed with this you will receive 
a printed paper, in which you will see in general what has 



20 



SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF 



recently been done in this country in relation to foreign misu 
sions. Four young gentlemen, Messrs. Adoniram Judson, Jr., 
Samuel Newell, and Samuel Nott, whose names you will find 
in the paper referred to, and Mr. Gordon Hall, have offered 
themselves as candidates for missions to the heathen, under a 
solemn profession that they have devoted themselves to God 
for this arduous service, wherever in his providence he may 
see fit to employ them. These beloved brethren have all 
passed through a course of collegial education* and received a 
collegial degree. Since leaving the universities, they have 
completed a course of studies at the theological institution in 
this vicinity, where they have, acquitted themselves to the high 
satisfaction of their instructors and friends. According to our 
established order, they have been regularly licensed for the 
Christian ministry, and for a considerable time they have all 
preached in our churches to good acceptance. Their moral 
and Christian reputation is good, and their talents and attain- 
ments are respectable. Before the Prudential Committee of 
the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions 
they have passed an examination in form, relative to their 
religious sentiments, their religious feelings, and their views in 
offering themselves for the missionary service ; and their answers 
and declarations throughout, were highly satisfactory. They 
profess their full belief in the articles of faith which are estab- 
lished in the theological institution, a copy of which you will 
receive ; and the Prudential Committee have great confidence 
that they have received the truth in love ; that they are persons 
of sincere and ardent piety ; that they have offered themselves 
for the missionary service from the best motives ; and, in a 
word, that they have qualifications for distinguished usefulness. 
The manner in which these young men have come forward, 
together with a similar disposition manifested by several others, 
has made, extensively, a deep impression, and excited a lively 
interest. It is gratefully hailed as an indication that the Lord 
is about to do something by his friends in this country, in fur- 
therance of the great design in which their brethren in Eng- 
land have been so nobly and so exemplarily engaged. 



EEV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D.D. 



21 



On our own continent, indeed, there are many millions of 
men " sitting in darkness and in the region and shadow of 
death," and our brethren in England may wonder that, while 
such is the fact, we should turn our views to any other part of 
the world. But the attempts which have been made to evan- 
gelize the aboriginal tribes of the North American wilderness 
have been attended with so many discouragements, and South 
America is yet in so unpromising a state, that the opinion very 
generally prevalent is, that for the pagans on this continent but 
very little can immediately be done. Hence, though the hope 
is entertained, that the time is coming when the benevolent 
exertions of the Redeemer's friends here, for spreading the 
knowledge of his name, may be successfully employed nearer 
home, yet at present the eastern world is thought to offer a 
more promising field. 

As yet, however, we have no adequate funds established for 
the support of distant and expensive missions. What may be 
done in the course of a short time we know not. It is the 
desire and the prayer of many, that American missionaries 
may have American support ; and we are not without hope 
that He to whom the silver and the gold belong will open the 
hearts of the rich among us for this interesting purpose. Should 
this hope be realized, and missionary funds to any considerable 
amount be raised, they will probably be placed under such an 
arrangement as to be employed either in the East, or on our 
own continent, as divine Providence may direct. 

Under existing circumstances, the American Board are de- 
sirous to open a communication with the London Missionary 
Society, whose knowledge of missionary concerns is ample, and 
the praise of whose liberality and persevering exertions is in all 
parts of the world. For this purpose, Mr. Judson, one of the 
missionary brethren, of whom you have already some know 
ledge, and who has been favored with a letter from you, has 
been appointed to go to London. To your courtesy and Chris- 
tian attention he is most affectionately and respectfully recom- 
mended ; and for the particular objects for which he is sent, I 
beg leave to refer you to his letter of instructions. 



22 



SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF 



Besides the official testimonial contained in this letter, Mr. 
Judson will carry with him others, and particularly one from 
the faculty of the theological institution at Andover — an insti- 
tution which, though young, is fast rising in importance, and 
in which, both on account of the principles on which it is 
founded, and the ability and piety with which it is conducted, 
great confidence is reposed. Should these testimonials be sat- 
isfactory, and should it in the event be thought best that our 
young brethren should be resigned to the patronage and direc- 
tion of your society, your venerable and highly respected Board 
of Directors will judge, whether, after the course of studies 
through which they have passed, it will be expedient for them 
to spend any time at your school at G-osport, and whether, 
for any purpose, it will be necessary for the other three to 
go to England, before they shall be actually engaged in your 
service. 

It may no^ be improper to state, that some of the young 
men propose to take wives with them to the missionary field. 
If this meet the approbation of your board, as we are not un- 
apprised of the laudable care which you take in regard to the 
character not only of your missionaries themselves, but also of 
their wives, we shall certainly consider it important that similar 
care be taken here. 

With great personal consideration, and in behalf of the 
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, I 
tender to you, dear sir, and through you to your brethren of 
the Board of Directors, the most affectionate and respectful 
salutations. 

Samuel Worcester, Cor. Sec. 
Rev. George Burder, Sec. London Miss. Soc. 

Mr. Judson sailed in the ship Packet for London, in Jan- 
uary, 1811, but on their voyage the vessel was captured by L' 
Invincible Napoleon, and Mr. Judson, with other prisoners, 
taken to France. He was detained for several weeks, but, 
crossing the channel, finally reached Dartmouth, in May, in 
safety. He immediately proceeded to London, presented his 



REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D.D. 



23 



letters, and was received with every mark of kind esteem by 
the directors of the London Missionary Society. 

The result of his errand was briefly this : 

The London Society gave no encouragment upon the subject 
of joining with an American Board for Foreign Missions, but 
were willing to receive the young candidates for missionary 
service into their own number. 

A society for the support of Foreign Missions being subse- 
quently formed in America, Messrs. A. Judson, Jr., S. Nott, 
Jr., S. Newell, and Gr. Hall were appointed missionaries, undef 
the direction of the Board, to labor in Asia. 

During the year 1810, while on a visit to Bradford, Mr. 
Judson became acquainted with Miss Ann Hasseltine, who, 
on the 5th of February, 1812, became his wife. 

At this point this sketch concludes, as the remainder of Mr 
Judson's useful career is best told in the lives of Ann, Sarah, 
and Emily, his helpmates and co-operators in his great labor 
of love amongst the heathen. 



LIFE OF 

ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON, 



FIRST WIFE OF 

REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D.D. 



CHAPTER I. 

BIRTH, PARENTAGE, EDUCATION, AND CONVERSION 

Ann Hasseltine, better known as Mrs. Ann H. JucU 
son, was born at Bradford, Massachusetts, Dec. 22d, 
1789. She was the daughter of John and Rebecca Has- 
seltine. 

Of her early life but little can be gathered from the 
sources before me, until she entered the Academy at 
Bradford, where she was the companion and friend of 
the martyr missionary, Harriet Newell, then Harriet 
Atwood, one who shared with Mrs. Judson the glory of 
being the first female missionary, who left America to 
carry into heathen darkness the great truths of Chris 
tianity. 

Ann Hasseltine gave promise very early of superior 
intellectual powers, and although the published works 



26 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



from her pen were written under the most unfavorable 
circumstances, in suffering, sickness, and heavy grief, 
they present unmistakable evidences of a vigorous intel- 
lect, ready pen, and deep religious feeling. 

During her first years at school, a lively, gay disposi- 
tion, with much wit, added to a loving, amiable heart, made 
her a great favorite both in her school and in society. 
Having had, at that time, no especial religious education, 
although taught that it was her duty to pray daily, and 
attend divine service on the Lord's day, she gave her 
whole attention to worldly pursuits. Full of life and 
vivacity, petted and courted by her young companions, 
she plunged with a keen relish into a giddy whirl of 
pleasure. Night after night found her the centre of some 
gay circle of young companions, thoughtless as herself, 
and religion, as a subject of vital importance, did not 
enter into her thoughts. In her journal, in speaking of 
this period of her life, she says : — 

u I now began to attend balls and parties of pleasure, 
and found my mind completely occupied with what I 
daily heard were ; innocent amusements.' My conscience 
reproved me, not for engaging in these amusements, but 
for neglecting to say my prayers, and read my Bible on 
returning from them ; but I finally put a stop to its re- 
monstrances, by thinking that, as I was old enough to 
attend balls, I was surely too old to say prayers. Thus 
were my fears quieted ; and for two or three years, I 
scarcely felt an anxious thought relative to the salvation 
of my soul, though I was rapidly verging towards eternal 
ruin. My disposition was gay in the extreme ; my sit- 
uation was such as afforded me opportunities for indulg- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



27 



ing it to the utmost ; I was surrounded with associates 
wild and volatile like myself, and often thought myself 
one of the happiest creatures on earth." 

The change from this state of mind to one anxious 
for her soul's eternal welfare, was gradual. Deeply 
conscious of the neglect of spiritual good, manifested in 
the gay career above alluded to, her first months of reli- 
gious impressions were full of dark forebodings, despair, 
and struggles against the temptations constantly thrown 
before her, to rejoin the gay group of which she formed 
so beloved and important a member. 

As, however, she had been foremost in the gay throng, 
so, now, with the same concentration of energy, she re- 
solved to break through these temptations, and become 
a worthy servant of the God who invited her to join his 
band of followers. Passing out of the dark valley of 
doubt and despair, she began to love the Lord with all 
the fervor of a warm, impulsive heart, and turning 
utterly from her old pursuits, she became a true professor 
of religion, dedicated to serve the God whose name she 
exalted, and whose word she carried into the heart of a 
heathen country. 

On the 14th of September, 1806, she became a mem- 
ber of the Congregational Church in Bradford. In her 
journal she speaks of this event with the solemn, earnest 
feeling manifested in her w T hole life, in spiritual mat- 
ters : — 

"Sept. 14z7z, 1806. I have this day publicly professed 
myself a disciple of Christ, and covenanted with him at 
his sacred table. I am now renewedly bound to keep 
his commandments and walk in his steps. Oh, may this 



28 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



solemn covenant never be broken ! May I be guarded 
from the vanities of this life, and spend all my days in 
the service of God. Oh, keep me, merciful God, keep 
me; for I have no strength of my own; I shall dis- 
honor thy cause, and ruin my soul, unless guided by 
thee !" 

On leaving the academy, deeply imbued with religious 
feeling, love for the living God, and an earnest desire to 
be useful to her fellow-creatures, she opened a school, 
feeling, she said, that " as Providence has placed me in 
a situation of life, where I have an opportunity of get- 
ting as good an education as I desire, I feel that it would 
be highly criminal in me not to improve it. I feel, also, 
that it would be equally criminal to desire to be well edu- 
cated and accomplished, from selfish motives, with a 
view merely to gratify my taste and relish for improve- 
ment, or my pride in being qualified to shine. I there- 
fore resolved, last winter, to attend the academy, from 
no other motive than to improve the talents bestowed by 
God, so as to be more extensively devoted to his glory 
and the benefit of my fellow-creatures. On being lately 
requested to take a small school for a few months, I felt 
very unqualified to have the charge of little immortal 
souls ; but the hope of doing them good, by endeavor- 
ing to impress their young and tender minds with divine 
truth, and the obligation I feel, to try to he useful, have 
induced me to comply." 

Actuated always by these same pious impulses, seek- 
ing strength and wisdom for her new duties in frequent, 
earnest prayer, she kept school at different times in 
Salem, Haverhill, and Newbury. Never, in her anxiety 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTTNE JUDSON, 



to cultivate the intellects of her pupils, did she forget 
for an instant the higher interest she had undertaken, to 
guide their souls to heaveji. Opening her first school 
with prayer, she always kept before her scholars the im- 
portance of seeking Christ early. 

During the years which followed her conversion, and 
those in which she taught school, she read constantly the 
religious works within her reach. Guise, Orton, Scott, 
Edwards, Hopkins, Bellamy, Doddridge, Brainerd, &c, 
were, with her, books for daily study and contemplation. 

Her mind was now fully engrossed with religious 
ardor, and, as with her studies, her gaieties, and her 
search for truth, she gave her heart entirely to the ob- 
ject before her, so now, having once laid aside worldly 
hopes, she bent the whole energy of a cultivated intel- 
lect, solemn conviction of truth, and ardent and enthu- 
siastic temperament, and great decision of character, to 
the one great object of life, to honoring and glorifying 
the name of her Saviour. 

Thus was laid the foundation of that pre-eminent piety 
and love of usefulness, which carried the self-sacrificing 
woman through fearful scenes and severe trials, sufficient 
to appall the stoutest heart, and turn back any laborer 
in the missionary field governed by a spirit one whit less 
devoted than hers. 



so 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



CHAPTER II. 

MARRIAGE AND VOYAGE TO INDIA CHANGE OF RELIGIOUS 

SENTIMENT ARRIVAL AT CALCUTTA DIFFICULTIES WITH 

GOVERNMENT — VOYAGE TO ISLE OF FRANCE — DEATH OF 
MRS. NEWELL VOYAGE TO RANGOON. 

During the session of the Massachusetts Association 
at Bradford in 1810, Miss Hasseltine first met the young 
Adoniram Judson, then in all the fervor of his desire to 
go forth as a missionary. The friendship then formed 
ripened into a warm mutual attachment, and Mr. Judson 
made Miss Hasseltine an offer of marriage, proposing 
that she should accompany him in his missionary enter- 
prise. 

It was not without much prayer and long meditation 
that this offer was accepted. There was before Miss 
Hasseltine no example of female missionaries from her 
own country. Humble in her spirit, ever doubtful of 
her own efforts, and ever seeking, in the daily routine 
of home duties, strength from the Most High, what won- 
der that she hesitated to become the pioneer of her sex 
in America, to the far distant heathen ? 

Amongst her friends, the scheme was, with few excep- 
tions, looked upon as foolishly romantic and Quixotic, 
and every dark side was presented to her in its deepest 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



31 



colors to discourage the idea. With a heart overflowing 
with love for her parents and relatives, she was called 
upon to decide to leave them, never, probably, to meet 
again on this side of the grave. An extract from her 
journal, written at that time, shows the conflict of her 
spirit, and the high, pure motives by which her decision 
was governed. 

" Sept. 10, 1810. For several weeks past, my mind 
has been greatly agitated. An opportunity has been 
presented to me, of spending my days among the hea- 
then, in attempting to persuade them to receive the Gos- 
pel. Were I convinced of its being a call from God, 
and that it would be more pleasing to him for me to 
spend my life in this way than in any other, I think I 
should be willing to relinquish every earthly object, and, 
in full view of dangers and hardships, give myself up to 
the great work. 

" A consideration of this subject has occasioned much 
self-examination, to know on what my hopes were founded, 
and whether my love to Jesus was sufficiently strong to 
induce me to forsake all for his cause. At times I have 
felt satisfied that I loved him, on account of his own glo- 
rious perfections, and have been desirous that he should 
do with me as he should please, and place me in that 
situation, in which I can be most useful. I have felt 
great satisfaction in committing this case to God, know- 
ing that he has a perfect understanding of the issue of 
all events, is infinitely wise to select the means best cal- 
culated to bring about the most important ends, and is 
able and willing to make the path of duty plain before 
me, and incline me to walk therein. At other times, I 



32 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



have felt ready to sink, being distressed with fears about 
my spiritual state, and appalled at the prospect of pain 
and suffering, to which my nature is so averse, and ap- 
prehensive, that when assailed by temptation, or exposed 
fcii danger and death, I should not be able to endure, as 
seoing Him who is invisible. But I now feel willing to 
leave it entirely with God. He is the fountain of all 
grace; and if he has designed me to be a promoter of 
his cause, among those who know him not, he can qualify 
me for the work, and enable me to bear whatever he is 
pleased to inflict. I am fully satisfied, that difficulties 
and trials are more conducive than ease and prosperity, 
to promote my growth in grace, and cherish an habitual 
sense of dependence on God. While the latter please 
my animal nature, and lead me to seek happiness in 
creature enjoyments, the former afford convincing proofs 
that this life is designed to be a state of trial, and not a 
state of rest, and thus tend to wean me from the world 
and make me look up to heaven as my home. Time ap- 
pears nothing when compared with eternity, and yet 
events, the most momentous, depend on the improvement 
of these fleeting years. Jesus, direct me, and I am 
safe ; use me in thy service, and I ask no more ! I would 
not choose my portion of work, or place of labor ; only 
let me know thy will, and I will readily comply. 

" Oct 28. My mind has still been agitated for two 
or three weeks past, in regard to the above mentioned 
subject. But I have, at all times, felt a disposition to 
leave it with God, and trust in him to direct me. I have, 
at length, come to the conclusion, that if nothing in pro- 
vidence appears to prevent, I must spend my days in a 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



33 



heathen land. I am a creature of God, and he has an 
undoubted right to do with me as seemeth good in his 
sight. I rejoice that I am in his hands — that he is 
everywhere present, and can protect me in one place as 
well as in another. He has my heart in his hands ; and 
when I am called to face danger, to pass through scenes 
of terror and distress, he can inspire me with fortitude, 
and enable me to trust in him. Jesus is faithful ; his 
promises are precious. Were it not for these considera- 
tions, I should, with my present prospects, sink down 
in despair, especially as no female has, to my knowledge, 
ever left the shores of America to spend her life among 
the heathen ; nor do I yet know that I shall have a sin- 
gle female companion. But God is my witness, that I 
have not dared to decline the offer that has been made 
me, though so many are ready to call it a 'wild, romantic 
undertaking.' If I have been deceived in thinking it 
my duty to go to the heathen, I humbly pray that I may 
be undeceived, and prevented from going. But whether 
I spend my days in India or America, I desire to spend 
them in the service of God, and be prepared to spend an 
eternity in his presence. Jesus, make me live to thee, 
and I desire no more !" 

With no romantic views upon the important question 
she was called upon to decide, seeing the trials and hard- 
ships clearly before, estimating at its true value the 
sacrifice she was making, Miss Hasseltine told Mr. Jud- 
son that she would become his wife and companion in the 
task before him. Although these young missionaries 
brought to this great work youthful enthusiasm and ar- 
dent love for the cause in which they were willing to em- 
8 



34 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINB JUDSON. 



bark for life, they did not allow these sentiments to 
blind them, even for an instant, to the true nature of 
the life before them. There was no adventurous spirit 
longing for excitement and change. Calmly, solemnly, 
and with spirits chastened by prayer, they estimated the 
hazards and toils of their future life ; they went forth 
strong in their love of Christ, earnest in their resolve to 
convert the heathen, knowing that before them lay a life 
of rigid self-denial, arduous toil, and, most probably, an 
early death. The letter written by Mr. Judson to Mr. 
Hasseltine at this period, shows how fully he appreciated 
these trials and dangers. After alluding to his proposal 
made to Miss Hasseltine herself, he says : 

" I have now to ask whether you can consent to part 
with your daughter early next spring, to see her no more 
in this world ; whether you can consent to her departure 
for a heathen land, and her subjection to the hardships 
and suiferings of a missionary life ; whether you can 
consent to her exposure to the dangers of the ocean ; to 
the fatal influence of the southern climate of India ; to 
every kind of want and distress ; to degradation, insult, 
persecution, and perhaps a violent death. Can you con- 
sent to all this, for the sake of Him who left his heavenly 
home, and died for her and for you ; for the sake of 
perishing immortal souls ; for the sake of Zion, and the 
glory of God ? Can you consent to all this, in hope of 
soon meeting your daughter in the world of glory, with 
a crown of righteousness, brightened by the acclamations 
of praise which shall redound to her Saviour from hea- 
thens saved, through her means, from eternal wo and 
despair?" 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 35 



In a letter written at this time by Mrs. Judson to a 
friend, she says : 

" I feel willing, and expect, if nothing in providence 
prevents, to spend my days in this world in heathen 
lands. I have come to the determination to give up all 
my comforts and enjoyments here, sacrifice my affection 
to relatives and friends, and go where God, in his provi- 
dence shall see fit to place me. My determinations are 
not hasty, or formed without viewing the dangers, trials, 
and hardships attendant on a missionary life. Nor were 
my determinations formed in consequence of an attach- 
ment to an earthly object ; but with a sense of my obli- 
gations to God, and with a full conviction of its being 
a call in providence, and, consequently, my duty." 

Mr. Judson married Miss Hasseltine in Bradford, 
February 5th, 1812, and on the nineteenth of the same 
month, they embarked for Calcutta, on the brig Caravan. 
Thus early in life, for she had just entered on her twen- 
ty-third year, did this noble woman dedicate herself to 
the great cause in which she was destined to fulfill such 
honorable and important duties. Mr. and Mrs. Newell 
embarked in the same vessel, the latter reaching the new 
home where she so desired to be useful, only to die, an 
early martyr in the great cause. 

It was during this voyage that the change of religious 
sentiment, from Congregationalists to. Baptists, took 
place in the minds of both Mr. and Mrs. Judson. 

They arrived in Calcutta on the 18th of June, 1812, 
and were received by the venerable Dr. Carey, who con- 
ducted them to his own home at Serampore. The follow- 
ing extracts show how the change in their religious feel- 



36 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



ings occurred, and also how much anxiety with regard to 
worldly prospects it plunged them into : — 

FROM MRS. JUDSON TO HER PARENTS. 

Isle of France, Port Louis, Feb. 14rfh, 1813. 
I will now, my dear parents and sisters, give you 
some account of our change of sentiment, relative to the 
subject of baptism. Mr. Judson's doubts commenced on 
our passage from America. While translating the New 
Testament, in which he was engaged, he used frequently 
to say that the Baptists were right in their mode of ad- 
ministering the ordinance. Knowing he should meet the 
Baptists at Serampore, he felt it important to attend to 
it more closely, to be able to defend his sentiments. 
After our arrival at Serampore, his mind for two or three 
weeks was so much taken up w T ith missionary inquiries 
and our difficulties with government, as to prevent his 
attending to the subject of baptism. But as we were 
waiting the arrival of our brethren, and having nothing 
in particular to attend to, he again took up the subject. 
I tried to have him give it up, and rest satisfied in his 
old sentiments, and frequently told him if he became a 
Baptist, I would not. He, however, said he felt it his 
duty to examine closely a subject on which he had so 
many doubts. After we removed to Calcutta, he found 
in the library in our chamber, many books on both sides, 
which he determined to read candidly and prayerfully, 
and to hold fast, or embrace the truth, however mortify- 
ing, however great the sacrifice. I now commenced 
reading on the subject, with all my prejudices on the 
Pedobaptist side. We had with us, Dr. Worcester's, Dr. 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



37 



AftrftWs; Peter Edwards's, and other Pedobaptist wri- 
tings. But, after closely examining the subject for sev- 
eral weoks, we were constrained to acknowledge that the 
truth appeared to lie on the Baptists' side. It was ex- 
tremely trying to reflect on the consequences of our 
becoming Baptists. We knew it would wound and grieve 
our dear christian friends in America — that we should 
lose their approbation and esteem. We thought it pro- 
bable that the commissioners would refuse to support us ; 
and, what was more distressing than anything, we knew 
we must be separated from our missionary associates, and 
go alone to some heathen land. These things were very 
trying to us, and caused our hearts to bleed for anguish. 
We felt we had no home in this world, and no friend but 
each other. Our friends at Serampore were extremely 
surprised when we wrote them a letter requesting bap- 
tism, as they had known nothing of our having had any 
doubts on the subject. We were baptized on the 6th of 
September, in the Baptist chapel in Calcutta. Mr. J. 
preached a sermon at Calcutta, on this subject, soon after 
we were baptized, which, in compliance with the request 
of a number who heard it, he has been preparing for the 
press. Brother Bice was baptized several weeks aftei 
we were. It was a very great relief to our minds to 
have him join us, as we expected to be entirely alone in 
a mission. 

Mr. Judson writes thus to the Rev. Dr. Bolles of 
Salem : — 



38 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



TO THE REV. DR. B0LLES, SALEM, MASS. 

Calcutta, Sept. 1st, 1812. 

Rev. Sir : — I recollect that, during a short interview 
I had with you in Salem, I suggested the formation of a 
society among the Baptists in America for the support 
of foreign missions, in imitation of the exertions of your 
English brethren. Little did I then expect to be person- 
ally concerned in such an attempt. 

Within a few months, I have experienced an entire 
change of sentiments on the subject of baptism. My 
doubts concerning the correctness of my former system 
of belief commenced during my passage from America 
to this country ; and after many painful trials, which none 
can know but those who are taught to relinquish a sys- 
tem in which they had been educated, I settled down in 
the full persuasion that the immersion of a professing 
believer in Christ is the only Christian baptism. 

Mrs. Judson is united with me in this persuasion. We 
have signified our views and wishes to the Baptist mis- 
sionaries at Serampore, and expect to be baptized in this 
city next Lord's day. 

A separation from my missionary brethren, and a dis- 
solution of my connection with the Board of Commis- 
sioners, seem to be necessary consequences. The mis- 
sionaries at Serampore are exerted to the utmost of their 
ability in managing and supporting their extensive and 
complicated mission. 

Under these circumstances I look to you. Alone, in 
this foreign heathen land, I make my appeal to those 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 3S 

whom, with their permission, I will call my Baptist bre- 
thren in the United States. 

With the advice of the brethren at Serampore, I am 
contemplating a mission on one of the eastern islands. 
They have lately sent their brother Chater to Ceylon, 
and their brother Robinson to Java. At present, Am- 
boyna seems to present the most favorable opening. 
Fifty thousand souls are there perishing without the 
means of life ; and the situation of the island is such 
that a mission there established might, with the bless- 
ing of God, be extended to the neighboring islands in 
those seas. 

But should I go thither, it is a most painful reflection 
that I must go alone, and also uncertain of the means 
of support. But I will trust in Grod. He has fre- 
quently enabled me to praise his divine goodness, and 
will never forsake those who put their trust in him. I 
am, dear sir, 

Yours, in the Lord Jesus, 

Adoniram Judson, Jr. 

It will be seen from the above extracts that the motives 
which actuated the young missionaries were of the purest, 
most exalted nature. They saw before them a separation 
from the religious society upon which they depended for 
support, with no certain prospect that their " Baptist 
brethren' ' in America would afford them protection or 
support. They were in a foreign land, far from the 
possibility of exerting any personal influence, knowing 
that it must be months before the news of their change 
of sentiment could be carried home, and months more 



40 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 

must elapse before the answer to their appeal to the 
Baptist Church in America could be received. Yet, with 
a firm conviction of the truth of their new religious 
feelings, and an entire reliance upon heavenly support, 
they faced the future bravely, praying only for strength 
to do the will of their Heavenly Father. 

A new trial now awaited them. Fearing that the in- 
crease of knowledge, and the introduction of Christian- 
ity amongst the Hindoos, would incite them to rebellion 9 
the East India Company most resolutely opposed mission- 
ary labors in the East. Mr. and Mrs. Judson, Mr. and 
Mrs. Newell, and Mr. Rice, just entering upon the field 
of their hoped-for labors, received cordially by the Eng- 
lish missionary at Serampore, were congratulating them- 
selves upon the prospect of usefulness before them, when 
they were summoned to Calcutta. Here an order was 
read, requiring them immediately to re-embark for Ame- 
rica. Seeing in such a course the death-blow of all their 
hopes, they petitioned for leave to remove to some other 
portion of India. This was denied them. Again they 
pleaded, and finally obtained permission to embark for 
the Isle of France. Another difficulty now arose. The 
only vessel then leaving for the Isle of France, could 
carry but two passengers. Mr. and Mrs. Newell were 
the two who embarked in August for Port Louis, while 
Mr. and Mrs. Judson, and Mr. Rice remained at Cal- 
cutta. 

Again a peremptory order was, after a lapse of two 
months, sent to them, requiring them to leave the country 
for England, in one of the company's ships. Mrs. Jud- 
son says, " They issued a most peremptory order for our 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 41 



being sent immediately on board on© of the Honorable 
Company's vessels, bound to England. A petty officer 
accompanied Messrs. Rice and Judson to their place of 
residence and requested them not to leave it without per- 
mission. Mr. Rice and Mr. Judson, however, soon as- 
certained, that a vessel would sail for the Isle of France 
in two days. They applied for a pass from the chief 
magistrate, but were refused. They communicated to 
the captain of the ship their circumstances, and asked if 
he would venture to take them on board without a pass. 
He replied that he would be neutral ; there was his ship 
and they might do as they pleased." 

Accepting this as a permission, Mr. and Mrs. Judson, 
and Mr. Rice sent their baggage to the vessel, and them- 
selves embarked. They had proceeded but a short dis- 
tance when an order was sent from Calcutta, directing the 
vessel to remain stationary until the missionaries left it, 
as government had refused them a pass. At first there 
seemed a prospect of evading the order, but finally the 
three missionaries left the vessel. Mr. Rice returned to 
Calcutta, leaving Mr. and Mrs. Judson at a tavern on 
the coast. Mr. Judson left his wife to try to obtain a 
passage in another vessel, and alone, a stranger and fe- 
male, this heroic woman remained on shore with the 
baggage. Mr. Judson returned after a vain search, and 
the Creole, the vessel in which they left Calcutta, having 
gone on her voyage, there seemed no prospect but to re- 
turn to Calcutta and obey the government's orders. 
Whilst they were in this strait, a letter containing the 
desired pass in the Creole was forwarded by an unknown 
friend. They had been on shore for three days, how- 



42 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



ever, and there was every reason to suppose the Creole 
far beyond their reach. There was a possibility, now- 
ever, of her having anchored seventy miles from where 
they were, at S augur, and they embarked on this frail 
hope, to overtake her. Providence guided them, and 
they found their hopes realized ; the Creole was at Sau- 
gur, and they again went on board. 

Heavy tidings awaited them at the Isle of France. 
Harriet Newell, Mrs. Judson's school-mate, friend, and 
dear companion in the missionary enterprise, was dead. 
This was a heavy blow to Mrs. Judson; it -was the sever- 
ing of one of the tenderest ties in her new life, and it 
required all her Christian fortitude to bear with resigna- 
tion this heavy blow. 

Mr. Rice, in the meantime, embarked for America to 
endeavor to awaken the Baptists of this country to the 
importance of Foreign Missions. He was eminently 
successful. A Baptist General Convention was formed 
in Philadelphia, and other societies in all parts of the 
country. One of the first acts of the Convention was 
the appointment of Mr. and Mrs. Judson, as their mis- 
sionaries, leaving the field of labor to their own judg- 
ment. 

During the short stay of the two missionaries in the 
Isle of France, Mrs. Judson was ill, at one time she 
writes her own feeling that death was not far from her, 
but she recovered, and in May, 1813, left Port Louis 
with her husband for Madras. Here they hoped to find 
a passage to Penang, but were disappointed. They were 
received with much kindness by the English missionaries 
at Madras, and finding a vessel about to embark for 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



43 



Rangoon, they decided to take a passage for that place. 
Thus, spite of their fears and the discouragements 
thrown in their way, they were, by a succession of pro- 
vidential occurrences, embarked for the Burman Empire. 

This step was one which, more than any preceding 
one, marked the self-sacrificing spirit of this noble 
couple. In their passage from America they had loved 
companions, whose lot was cast with theirs, and whose 
society ameliorated every hardship. In resolving to go 
to Rangoon, they bade farewell to every friend, to em- 
bark alone for a nation the most barbarous and bigoted 
on the face of the globe. There was 'not one friend to 
accompany them, nor was there any prospect of a re- 
union with those they left. Yet, seeing that Providence 
opened a way towards this vast field for missionary labor, 
they unhesitatingly embarked, to encounter, alone, the 
hardships before them. 

In the year 1815, Mr. Hough and his wife were ap- 
pointed, by the Baptist Board, missionaries, to assist 
Mr. and Mrs. Judson in Burmah. 

On the passage to Rangoon Mrs. Judson was taken 
dangerously ill. A female attendant had been engaged 
at Madras to nurse her, but died suddenly on board the 
vessel, leaving her without any female attendant. She 
partially recovered her health before landing in Ran- 
goon, though she was so feeble that it was necessary to 
carry her ashore in a litter. She writes : 

" We felt very gloomy and dejected the first night we 
arrived, in view of our prospects ; but we were enabled 
to lean on God, and to feel that he was able to support 
us under the most discouraging circumstances. The 



44 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 

next morning I prepared to go on shore, but hardly 
knew how I should get to Mr. Carey's house, as there 
was no method of conveyance, except a horse, which I 
was unable to ride. It was, however, concluded that I 
should be carried in an armed chair; consequently when 
I landed, one was provided, through which were put two 
bamboos, and four of the natives took me on their shoul- 
ders. When they had carried me a little way into the 
town, they set me down under a shade, when great num- 
bers of the natives gathered around, as they had seldom 
seen an English female. Being sick and weak, I held 
my head down, which induced many of the native fe- 
males to come very near, and look under my bonnet. 
At this I looked up and smiled, at which they set up a 
loud laugh. They again took me up to carry, and the 
multitude of natives gave a shout, which much diverted 
us. They next carried me to a place they call the cus- 
tom house. It was a small open shed, in which were 
seated on mats several natives, who were the custom- 
house officers. After searching Mr. Judson very closely 
they asked liberty for a native female to search me, to 
which I readily consented. I was then brought to the 
mission-hou&e, where I have entirely recovered my 
health." 

In order fully to comprehend the magnitude of the 
task now before these two noble missionaries, the reader 
should understand the state of the Burman Empire, at 
the period of their arrival, and realize the bigoted feel- 
ings of the natives upon religion. 



LIFE OF ANN HAS3ELTINE JUDSON. 



45 



CHAPTER III. 

DESCRIPTION OF THE BURMAN EMPIRE, AND THE BURMESE 
RELIGION. 

From the Memoirs of Dr. Judson, by the Rev. Fran- 
cis Wayland, 1 quote the following account of the Bur- 
man Empire : — 

" The Burman empire occupies that extensive region 
of Eastern India, or India beyond the Ganges, which 
lies between the British possessions on the west and Siam 
and China on the east, being bounded by Thibet on the 
north, and the Bay of Bengal on the south. At the time 
of Mr. Judson's arrival, its extent was considerably 
greater than at present. Its sea coast then stretched 
from the southern limits of the province of Chittagong 
to Junk Ceylon, at the southern extremity of the Tenas- 
serim provinces. It thus commanded more than a third 
part of the Bay of Bengal. Its length was about ten 
hundred and twenty miles, and its breadth about six hun- 
dred. 

" By the treaty of Yandabo, theBurmans ceded to Great 
Britain the larger part of their territory lying upon the 
sea coast. This included the province of Arracan from 
Chittagong to Cape Negrais on the east, and the Tenas- 



46 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



serim provinces from the mouth of the Salwen River to 
Junk Ceylon. Their sea coast is now bounded by Cape 
Negrais on the west, and Martaban on the east, embra- 
cing the district occupied by the numerous mouths of the 
Irrawadi River. Its length is now about seven hundred 
and twenty, and its breadth about four hundred miles, 
Its two principal seaports are Rangoon on the eastern, 
and Bassein on the western branch of the Irrawadi. 
Both are very favorably situated for commerce. Rangoon 
is said by English writers to possess the finest capabilities 
of any port in the Bay of Bengal. 

" The great river of Burmah is the Irrawadi, which, 
rising in the Chinese province of Yunan, with the excep- 
tion of a flexure to the west, between Ava and Pugan, 
pursues a course almost directly south. The Kyen Dwen, 
a large tributary from the north, unites with it at Yan- 
dabo. A smaller stream from the east empties into it 
at Ava. The Salwen River, the eastern boundary of 
Burmah, communicates by numerous branches with the 
Irrawadi, watering the intermediate region, and opening 
facilities for internal navigation for the regions which 
occupy the central part of the empire. 

" A few miles from the town of Sarwa, the Irrawadi 
divides into two branches, the one pursuing a south-east- 
ern, the other a south-western course to the Bay of Ben- 
gal. From each of these smaller branches, proceed in 
every direction, uniting with each other, and forming a 
perfect network of navigable waters, which covers the 
whole peninsula from the base of the Arracan Mountains 
to the banks of the Salwen River. These various streams, 
or natural canals, at last enter the Bay of Bengal by 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 47 



fourteen separate channels. Most of them are, however, 
rendered useless for foreign commerce by sand bars, which 
obstruct navigation. 

" From the sea coast to nearly the latitude of Prome, 
the country is a level, alluvial plain, intersected, as I 
have remarked, by innumerable watercourses. The soil 
is exceedingly productive, and is specially adapted to the 
cultivation of rice, the universal diet of the inhabitants 
of India. This is, therefore, the granary of the empire. 
Ascending the river, as you leave Prome, the face of the 
country changes. High ranges of mountains appear on 
the right hand and on the left, and the intermediate re- 
gion becomes undulating and hilly. The mountains 
approach nearer and nearer to the river, until tire banks 
become steep and precipitous. Above the latitude of Ava, 
the whole region is intersected by mountain ranges run- 
ning north and south, and penetrating Asam on the west 
and the province of Yunan on the east. 

" The portions of Burmah ceded to the British at the 
close of the last war, were the kingdom of Arracan and 
the Tenasserim provinces.* The former is generally 
hilly, with extensive alluvial flats near the sea, and along 
the numerous streams, fertile, and adapted to the culti- 
vation of rice. Akyab, the principal port, has a secure 
and convenient harbor. Of the Tenasserim provinces, 

* Since this paragraph was written, the Burman empire has 
been again dismembered, and the British have annexed to the 
possessions of the Hon. East India Company the kingdom of 
Pegu, which formed the whole lower portion of the country. 
The Burmans thus have lost the whole of their territory lying 
on the Bay of Bengal, their southern limit being to the north 
of Prome. 



48 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



the principal rivers are the various branches of the Sal- 
wen, the Ataran, the Tavoy, and the Mergui rivers. 
Most of these streams are, for a short distance, naviga- 
ble for vessels of considerable burden, and must, in time, 
become the homes of extensive commerce. 

"Respecting the population of Bnrmah, the difference 
of the estimates is quite remarkable. Colonel Symes, 
who visited the empire in the year 1795, supposed ths 
number of inhabitants to be about seventeen millions. 
When the Baptist mission was first established in Ran- 
goon, this computation was supposed to be correct, and 
it was frequently said that the population of Burmah 
equaled that of the United States. Later travelers 
have reduced it to eight millions. Crawford, after as 
careful a computation as be was able to form, does not 
believe that it exceeds four millions. Dr. Malcom be- 
lieves that there may be three million Burmans, three 
million Shyans, and probably two millions of other 
tribes, subject to the Burman dominion. When estimates 
of this kind are made, the lowest is, I think, most likely 
to be correct. Travelers, in such a country as this, 
must, of necessity, pursue the most frequented routes, 
and follow the most navigable watercourses. These, 
being always the most thickly-peopled portions of a 
country, would naturally convey an exaggerated idea of 
its population. I am of the opinion that more accurate 
investigation than is now possible will show that the 
population of the empire and its present dependencies 
does not exceed six or eight millions.* 

* The population has since been greatly reduced by the loss 
of the kingdom. 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 49 



u A large portion of the soil of Burmah is fertile, and 
under a good government would be remarkably produc- 
tive. The lower provinces, from the sea to the latitude 
of Prome, produce, as I have said, rice in great abun- 
dance. In the more elevated districts, cotton of a good 
quality, of a soft and silky texture, but of short staple, 
is everywhere cultivated. The teak tree, the best ship 
timber in the world, grows on the mountains. Maize, 
wheat, millet, and various kinds of pulses, with the usual 
variety of edible roots, and a multitude of tropical fruits, 
are produced with very little labor. The domestic 
animals are such as are common in India — the buffalo, 
braminy cattle, the horse and the goat; and in the forests 
are found the elephant, the rhinoceros, the tiger, and 
several varieties of the deer. 

" The mineral wealth of Burmah is probably great. It 
possesses mines of iron, tin, silver, and gold, and pro- 
duces sapphires, emeralds, and rubies, with amber in 
large quantities. Sulphur, arsenic, and antimony are 
found in abundance, and coal, both anthracite and bitu- 
minous, exists in various places, but has not yet been 
brought into use. On the banks of the Irawadi, a short 
distance above Prome, petroleum is obtained in large 
quantities. The annual yield of the wells here is said 
by Dr. Malcom to be about eighty millions of pounds. 
Marble is found in various places, and some of the 
quarries yield a product which is said, for statuary pur- 
poses, to equal that from Carrara. 

"The commerce of the empire is but limited. The 
Burmans are intelligent and industrious, and under a 
good government would probably soon excel in manufac- 
4 



50 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



tures. Under the protection of English employers, they 
at one time became excellent ship builders at Rangoon. 
But manufactures require fixed capital, and when the 
possession of capital invites oppression and spoliation, 
they cannot exist. Hence the exports of Burmah are 
limited almost exclusively to the raw materials produced 
by their unskilful labor. The most important of them 
are teak wood, raw cotton, both white and yellow, precious 
stones, and lackered ware. Teak wood is sent to Cal- 
cutta, and is mostly used in the naval service of Great 
Britain. Cotton and precious stones, lackered ware, and 
edible birds' nests are sent to China. The English send, 
in return, cotton fabrics, hardware, cutlery, and old 
muskets. The Chinese bring principally raw silk, which 
is made into coarse goods by the Burmans, and the vel- 
vets which are worn on state occasions by the grandees 
of the empire. Rice, salt, and salt fish are carried from 
the southern provinces and the sea coast to the upper 
country, and exchanged for lackered ware, raw cotton, 
precious stones, metals, and petroleum. 

" The government of Burmah is an unmitigated despot- 
ism of the sternest character. The king is the acknow- 
ledged possessor of the soil, and the people are his slaves. 
He is lord of the life and property of all his subjects. 
No rank or ofiice protects a citizen from the liability of 
being ordered to immediate execution, if such be the will 
of the monarch. Several of the commanders who were 
defeated in the last war with the British were beheaded 
within a few hours of their arrival at the capitol. When 
a man is put to death by the order of the king, his 
property reverts to the crown. Hencj the possession 



i 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



51 



of large wealth becomes a somewhat unenviable dis- 
tinction. 

" The government of the empire is administered by a 
council of state, appointed by the king. This council is 
called collectively lut-d'hau, from the name of the hall 
in which its business is transacted. The counselors are 
four in number, unless, as it sometimes happens, on a 
special emergency, another member is added. These 
officers are called woon-gyees. All public matters are 
discussed in this council, and the decision is by the 
majority of voices. Every royal edict is by usage sanc- 
tioned by this council, and, in fact, appears in their 
name, rather than in that of the king. Their functions 
are legislative, judicial, and executive. 

"Each woon-gyee has a deputy, who is called a woon- 
douk. The woon-douks, although they sit in council, 
neither deliberate nor vote. Whatever business they 
transact is in the name of their superiors. 

" The woon-douks have also their assistants, who are 
called sara-dau-gyee. They are from eight to ten in 
number. These are, in fact, the secretaries of the lut- 
d'hau, and their business is to record its proceedings. 
Their name signifies 'great royal scribes.' 

"A second council forms another branch of the gov- 
ernment. This, like the other, consists of four members 
Their title is atwen-woon, meaning 4 inside' ministers of 
state.* These officers constitute the private advisers of 
the king. Whatever emanates directly from him is first 
discussed in this privy council, before it is transmitted 
to the lut-d'hau. It deliberates and votes like the 
* Inside ministers, or privy counselors. 



52 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



superior council, and its * members exercise also judicial 
functions. It is a matter of dispute at the court of Ava 
whether the rank of atwen-woon or of woon-douk be the 
higher. 

"Attached to the privy council are secretaries, com- 
monly thirty in number. These are called than-dau- 
sens. They hold the same relation to the atwen-woons 
that the woon-douks hold to the woon-gyees. Their 
business is to record the proceedings of the council, to 
take minutes of the king's commands, and to read and 
report upon petitions. Attached to both of these coun- 
cils are four or five officers, called nakandau, meaning 
'deputies of the royal star.' Theijc business is, nomi- 
nally, to convey messages between the two councils, but, 
really, to report to the king what is done in the lut- 
d'hau. 

" Such is the theory of the government. In practice, 
however, a council which may be degraded or executed 
at the word of the monarch must be useless as advisers. 
In the former war with Great Britain, they frequently 
did not dare to make known the facts to the king, or 
even offer their opinions upon the state of affairs. They 
are really the passive instruments for carrying into effect 
the will of the monarch. They are willing to live in 
constant apprehension of disgrace and death, for the 
privilege of subjecting all below them to the same condi- 
tion. Political life seems too much the same in all coun- 
tries. • 

" The rank of every officer of government is determined 
by the tsalway, or golden chain, which passes over the 
left shoulder, and crosses the breast. In front it is di- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



vided into several strands of chain work. Three com- 
mon strands indicate the lowest grade of office ; three 
of more elaborate workmanship the next above; thee 
come those of six, nine, and twelve, which last number 
indicates the highest rank attainable by a subject. 
Princes of the blood most nearly related to the king 
wear eighteen. The monarch himself alone wears twenty- 
four. 

" The civil administration is organized as follows : The 
kingdom is divided into provinces, provinces into town- 
ships, townships into districts, and districts into villages 
or hamlets. 

" The governor of a province is called myo-woon, and 
is vested with the entire charge of the province, civil, 
judicial, military, and fiscal. Under him are collectors 
of customs, deputies, &c, who form his council, without 
w T hose assent no order of importance can be executed. 
The myo-woon has power of life and death. 

"The governor of a township is called myo-thoo-gyee. 
The governor, or head man, of a district or village is 
called thoo-gyee. These are all respectively subordinate 
to each other. 

"No public functionary receives any fixed salary. 
The principal officers of state are rewarded by assign- 
ments of certain districts, from the inhabitants of which 
they exact as much as they are able. Inferior officers 
are paid by fees, emoluments, perquisites, together with 
all that can be collected by extortion and bribery. . Each 
of these officers exercises judicial functions within his 
own district, an appeal, however, lying to the next 
higher in office. Bribery is universal ; and it rarely 



54 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



happens that a criminal is punished, if he is able to sat 
isfy the rapacity of the officer before whom he is ar- 
raigned. The judges take bribes from both sides, and 
the decree, except in very palpable cases, will be in favor 
of him who pays the highest. 

" The various provinces of the kingdom are apportioned 
out to favorites of the court, or are made responsible 
for the support of some branch of the government. 
The individual to whom this cession is made becomes 
then the governor of that province, or, as the Burmans 
appropriately term him, its ' eater,' or consumer. By 
means of his subordinate agents, he taxes every family 
as much as it is supposed to be able to pay. Every sub- 
ordinate officer takes his share of this tax, and the gov- 
ernor at last divides with the king the portion which he 
receives. The poor peasant is thus obliged to satisfy a 
succession of harpies, while but a small portion of what 
he pays ever reaches the public treasury. Besides these 
contributions paid to the lord of the land, the cultivators 
are from time to time, and according to the public exi- 
gency, called upon for contributions to the state. The 
amount of these is fixed by the lut-d'hau, or chief coun- 
cil. These contributions, being levied through the lords, 
or local officers, are made a pretext for additional exac- 
tions on their own account, often greater than those 
taken for the government. The Burman officers are 
thus turned loose upon the country, to prey upon it like 
a swarm of locusts. The contributions paid into the 
public treasury are little better than a hoard to gratify 
the desires of the reigning prince ; and the amount ex- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON* 55 



acted from the people for this purpose depends entirely 
upon his personal character. His subordinate officers, 
from the highest to the lowest, following the example of 
their chief ; and every energy of the people is crushed 
under a savage, selfish, and relentless despotism. 

" The religion of Burmah is Buddhism. To present an 
extended view of this form of religion, which numbers 
among its believers a larger portion of the inhabitants 
of the earth than any other, would be foreign to the de- 
sign of a memoir like the present. I can do nothing 
more than offer a brief statement of the Burman reli- 
gious system, compiled from such sources as have been 
within my reach. I was happy to find, after a pretty 
extensive research, that Dr. Judson had furnished Mr. 
Crawford with an article on this subject, which is in- 
serted in the fourth chapter of the second volume of his 
4 Embassy/ as I consider this of the highest authority, 
I transcribe it entire : 

" ' A life period, called A-yen-kat, is a revolution of 
rime, during which the life of man gradually advances 
from ten years to an A-then-kye, and returns again to 
ten. Sixty-four life periods make one intermediate pe- 
riod, (An-ta-ra-kat ;) sixty-four intermediate periods 
make one quarterly period, which may be so termed be- 
cause four such periods make one grand period (Ma-ha- 
kat,) a complete revolution of nature. The revolutions 
of nature, as marked by the various periods, are eternal 
or infinite. Some grand periods are distinguished by 
the development of an extraordinary being called a 
Budd'ha, who, though born of earthly parents, attains 



56 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



to the summit of omniscience.* The present grand pe« 
riod has been favored by four of these personages, whose 
names are Kan-kri-than, Gau-na-gong, Ka-tha-pa, and 
Gau-ta-ma. The fifth Budd'ha, or A-ri-mi-te-ya, is now 
reposing, according to the best authorities, in one of the 
lower celestial regions, and will develop himself in due 
time. 

u 6 The communications of all Budd'has previously to 
Gau-ta-ma are now lost. His communications, made at 
first to his immediate disciples, and by them retained in 
memory during five centuries more, after his decease 
agreed upon in several successive general councils, 
(Then-ga-ya-na,) and finally reduced to writing on palm 
leaves, in the Island of Ceylon, in the ninety-fourth year 
before Christ, and the four hundred and fiftieth after 
Gau-ta-ma, form the present Buddhist scriptures, the 
only rule of faith and practice. They are comprised in 
three grand divisions, (Pe-ta-kat.) which are again sub- 
divided into fifteen, and those into six hundred. 

" 6 According to the Buddhist scriptures, the universe 
is composed of an infinite number of worlds, or Sakya 
systems. A Sakya system consists of one central 
Myen-mo, or mount, the surrounding seas and islands, 
the celestial regions, including the revolving luminaries 
and the infernal regions. The earth on w r hich we live is 
the southernmost of the four grand islands which sur- 
round the mount, each of which is again surrounded by 
four hundred of smaller size. 

" ' The celestial regions consist of six inferior and 

* " Omniscience" is, according to Buddhists, the principal 
attribute of Gautama. 



LIFE OP ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



twenty superior heavens. Of the six inferior heavens, 
the first occupies the middle, and the second the summit 
of the Myen-mo mount. The remaining arise above 
each other in regular gradation. The same remark ap- 
plies to the superior heavens, which are again distin- 
guished into sixteen visible and four invisible. The in- 
ferior regions consist of eight hills, one above another, 
each being surrounded by sixteen smaller hills. 

" ' The universe is replete with an infinity of souls, 
which have been transmigrating in different bodies from 
all eternity ; ascent or descent in the scale of existence 
being at every change of state ascertained by the im- 
mutable " mysterious laws of fate," according to the 
merit or demerit of the individual. No being is exempt 
from sickness, old age, and death. Instability, pain, 
and change are the three grand characteristics of all ex- 
istence. 

" 4 The Burmans say : " However highly exalted in 
the celestial regions, and whatever number of ages of 
happiness may roll on, the fatal symptom of ' a moisture 
under the armpits will at length display itself." The 
mortal being, when this presents itself, must be prepared 
to exchange the blandishments and dalliance of celestial 
beauties for the gridirons, pitchforks, mallets, and other 
instruments of torture of the infernal regions. The 
chief end of man*, according to the Burmese, is to termi- 
nate the fatiguing course of transmigratory existence. 
This attainment Lord Gautama made in the eightieth 
year of his life, and all his immediate disciples have par- 
ticipated in the same happy fate. What remains to the 
present race of beings is to aim at passing their time in 



58 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



the regions of men and gods, until they shall come in 
contact with the next Budd'ha, the Lord Arimiteya, 
whom they may hope to accompany to the golden world 
of nigban, or annihilation. In order to this, it is neces- 
sary to keep the commands of the last Budd'ha, to wor- 
ship the Budd'ha, his law, and his priests ; to refrain 
from taking life ; from stealing ; from adultery ; from 
falsehood, and from drinking intoxicating liquors ; to 
regard the images and temples of the Budd'ha the same 
as himself ; to perform acts of worship, and listen to the 
instructions of religion on the days of the new moon, 
the full moon, and the quarters ; to make offerings for 
the support of the priests ; to assist at funerals, and, in 
general, to perform all charitable and religious duties. 

" ' In the year 930 after Gautama, A.D. 386, Budd'ha- 
gautha transcribed the Buddhist scriptures, with an iron 
pen of celestial workmanship, and brought them by sea 
to Pugan, the seat of supreme government. The time 
and manner in which the religion of Gautama was intro- 
duced into the country are not sufficiently ascertained. 
It subsequently underwent some modification, and was 
finally established in its present form by King Anan-ra- 
tha-men-sau, who began to reign in Pugan in the 1541st 
year after Gautama, the 359th of the present vulgar era, 
and A.D. 997.' 

" To this brief statement, which contains by far the 
most intelligible account of the system of Buddhism that 
I have seen, I will add a few items of information, which 
I have been able to glean from a tolerably extensive 
reading on the subject. 

" It will be seen that the moral code of Buddhism la 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



59 



simple and pure. Its five precepts are, I. Thou shalt 
not take life. This precept is universal. The priests, 
in order to obey it, carry with them a brush, with which 
they sweep the seat on which they are about to sit down, 
lest they should inadvertently crush the smallest insect. 
II. Thou shalt not steal. III. Thou shalt not commit 
adultery. IV. Thou shalt not lie. V. Thou shalt drink 
no intoxicating liquors. It is by obedience to these that, 
at death, we enter by transmigration into a better condi- 
tion than we occupy at present. 

" The Buddhist priesthood is confined to no class, and 
indeed the doctrines of Gaudama allow of no hereditary 
caste ; any man who complies with the required precepts 
may be admitted to the sacred order. He, however, is 
not obliged to remain in it for life, but may quit it at his 
pleasure, and, I think, without reproach. The priests 
are bound by the vows of celibacy and poverty. They 
are forbidden to hold property, and are supported by vol- 
untary contributions of the people. They go out daily 
in the streets with their rice pots, and every one gives 
them what he pleases. They af e forbidden, however, to 
take money, and they never ask for anything. Travel- 
ers assure us that they are never seen to turn their heads, 
or even look upon the offering made to them. It were 
well if the ecclesiastics of many other countries derived 
instruction from their example. 

" The labors of the priests seem unlike those of any 
other religion. They seldom preach, nor do they gene- 
rally seem to perform any specially religious service for 
the people. They are merely men sacredly devoted to 
pious observances and holy austerities. They reside alto- 



60 



LIFE OF ANN HASSBLTINE JtJDSON. 



gether in monasteries which have been erected for them, 
and in some cases endowed by monarchs or governors — • 
an appropriation of property held to be specially merito- 
rious. They are forbidden to have any connection with 
the civil power, and they seem to have but very little. 
Their principal employment is that of instructing the 
voung, to which they commonly devote themselves. 
The monasteries are, therefore, in general, the school- 
nouses of Burmah, and the priests are her schoolmasters. 
What they teach is very little ; but it suffices to enable 
a large portion of the male population to read. In this 
respect the Buddhist priesthood compares very favor- 
ably with that of other false or perverted systems of re- 
ligion. 

" The Buddhists have been commonly denominated 
atheists. Whatever may be the views which have sub- 
sequently obtained among the people at large, I doubt 
whether the system of Graudama is chargeable with this 
error. Men are believed to exist after death, inhabiting 
other bodies ; and the change which then takes place is 
determined by their conduct in the state which they oc- 
cupy at the present. They may be changed from men 
into gnats, and from gnats in an inferior to those of a 
superior grade ; thus gradually rising until they arrive 
at nigban. Or, on the other hand, they may be changed 
from men into animals, and, in successive transformation 
from animals of a higher to those of a lower grade, until 
they reach hell, or a place of unmixed torment. In 
cases of atrocious crime, as the murder of a parent, or 
a priest, they pass through no intermediate transforma- 
tions, but at once enter the place of torment. The doc- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



61 



trine of future rewards and punishments, as consequences 
of moral character in this life, is thus distinctly recog- 
nized. The peculiarity of their belief is, that this life 
is not considered as the state, but only a state of proba- 
tion. Probation extends to every state but nigban. 
Hence every living thing which we see is inhabited for 
the time being, by a soul similar to our own ; and we 
and it may, at any time, change places. From this 
idea is derived the prohibition to slay animals and every- 
thing that has life. 

" This system of rewards and punishments is adminis- 
tered, according to the Buddhist belief, by the various 
grades of existence superior to men, and inferior to Buddh 
An inquiry is instituted by these deities into the charac 
ter of every individual, and, in obedience to their deci 
sion, each one either ascends or descends in the scale of 
being. The government of the u liverse is, therefore, 
carried on, not by the supreme divinity, who is, accord- 
ing to the notions of oriental happiness, exempt from all 
care, but by inferior beings, who are still themselves 
striving upwards in order to arrive at nigban. 

" Such, then, seems to be the system of Buddhism. 
In its moral precepts, it is remarkable for purity. Sc 
far as the relations between man and man are concerned, 
it is, in many respects, similar to the Mosaic law. The 
punishments which it denounces against sin are awful 
beyond conception ; and the rewards of obedience are 
as great as the authors of the system could imagine. 
For the least aberration from rectitude the consequence 
is pain only less than infinite. It, however, in no case 
that I have seen, makes any allusion to repentance. 



62 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



After one sin, the being is forever helplessly under con- 
demnation, unless he can attain to annihilation. It pre- 
sents n o way of escape for the sinner by means of an atone- 
ment. It is a pure system of law, with its rewards and 
punishments, without relenting, without pardon, and with- 
out hope for the guilty. 

" It remains to consider what has been the practical 
effect of this system upon the mind of man. It is a sys- 
tem, it will be remembered, devised to govern the moral 
conduct of a race of sinners. Hence the impossibility 
of avoiding its penalties is at once evident. Do w T hat we 
will, conscience must convict us of grievous moral imper- 
fection, involving the necessity of ages of suffering, with- 
out the certainty of any eventual escape. Under such 
a system, the mind sinks down in utter helplessness. 
When there is no escape from punishment, the difference 
between ten millions and twenty millions of transmigra- 
tions is not capable of being appreciated. Virtue and 
vice, in our imperfect state, are, therefore, hardly capa- 
ble of being distinguished from each other in their results. 
Thus the system which seems to have exhausted the hu- 
man faculties in conceiving of terrors which should deter 
us from sin, is found practically to have created against 
it no barrier whatever. 

" The result was such as might have been expected. 
While the law of Graudama forbids us to take the life of 
any animated being, the Burmans are bloodthirsty, cruel, 
and vindictive, beyond most of the nations of India. 
Murders are of very common occurrence, and the pun- 
ishment by death is inflicted with every aggravation of 
cruelty. While licentiousness is absolutely forbidden, 



LIFE OP ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. G3 



they are said to be universally profligate. While the 
law denounces covetousness, they are almost to a man 
dishonest, rapacious, prone to robbery, and to robbery 
ending in blood. The law forbids, on all occasions, 
treachery and deceit, and yet, from the highest to the 
lowest, they are a nation of liars. When detected in 
the grossest falsehood, they indicate no consciousness of 
shame, and even pride themselves upon successful de- 
ceit. 

" Respecting the practical effect of this system, Mr. 
TJpham observes : 6 The scheme is sustained by a system 
of morals of the most exemplary kind, such as may cause 
a blush of shame in many a Christian who feels his 
higher privileges, while he considers the inferiority of 
his practice ; but this system is absolutely powerless to 
enforce or fasten its dictates upon the conscience, or to 
renovate the heart.'* Mr. Upham sustains his view of 
the practical result of Buddhism by the following quo- 
tation from Mr. Judson, whom he describes as one who 
has had the best opportunity to examine it, and whose 
coloring he declares to be strong, but faithful : 6 Let 
those who plead the native innocence and purity of hea- 
then nations visit Burmah. The system of religion here 
has no power over the heart, or restraint on the passions. 
Though it forbids, on pain of many years' suffering in 
hell, theft and falsehood, yet, 1 presume to say, there is 
not a single Burman in the country, who, if he had a 
good opportunity, without danger of detection, would 
hessitate to do either. Though the religion inculcates 
benevolence, tenderness, forgiveness of injuries, and love 
* Upham's History of Buddhism, p. 102. 



64 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



of enemies — though it forbids sensuality, love of plea- 
sure, and attachment to worldly objects — yet it is desti- 
tute of power to produce the former, or to subdue the 
latter, in its votaries. In short, the Burman system of 
religion is like an alabaster image, perfect and beautiful 
in all its parts, but destitute of life. Besides being des- 
titute of life, it provides no atonement for sin. Here 
also the gospel triumphs over this and every other reli- 
gion in the world.' 

" If, now, we revert to what we have stated above, we 
shall perceive that the Burman empire is large in extent, 
and that its soil is of unusually great and varied pro- 
ductiveness. It possesses a regular government, by which 
the decisions of the court are carried with effect to the 
remotest hamlet, through a succession of officers pro- 
ceeding in regular gradation from the emperor to the 
magistrate of the smallest district. Its people are active, 
athletic, and as industrious as could be expected under 
a tyrannical and oppressive government. A large por- 
tion of the people is able to read. It possesses a well- 
defined system of religion, and a regularly-organized 
priesthood. But the whole people are destitute of any 
semblance either of piety to God or benevolence to man. 
They have no hope, and are living without God in the 
world. They have acknowledged that St. Paul's descrip- 
tion of the heathen, in the first of Romans, delineates 
accurately the national character. Such is the nation 
which Mr. Judson went forth to convert to the religion 
of Jesus Christ." 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



6b 



CHAPTER IV. 

LEARNING THE LANGUAGE — VISIT TO THE VICEROY'S WIFE- 
MRS. JUDSON'S ILLNESS — VOYAGE TO MADRAS — RETURN 
TO RANGOON — BIRTH AND DEATH OF A SON— MR. JUDSON'S 
ILLNESS — ARRIVAL OF MR. AND MRS. HOUGH AT RANGOON 

MR. JUDSON LEAVES RANGOON— TROUBLE MR. AND 

MRS. HOUGH LEAVE RANGOON — MRS. JUDSON'S FORTITUDE 
— RETURN OF MR. JUDSON. 

Immediately upon their arrival at Rangoon, Mr. and 
Mrs. Judson commenced the study of the language. 
They engaged a teacher, a man of intelligence and 
ability; but as there were no books, and neither party 
understood the other, their progress at first was very 
slow and discouraging. They were animated however 
by the hope of being able to communicate the glad 
tidings of Christianity to a benighted country, and 
studied diligently in order to acquire the uncouth dialect 
of the Burman natives. 

Mrs. "Judson, in a letter to a friend, says : 
"As it respects ourselves, we are busily employed all 
day long. I can assure you that we find much pleasure 
in our employment. Could you look into a large open 
room, which we call a verandah, you would see Mr. 
Judson bent over his table, covered with Burman books, 
with his teacher at his side, a venerable looking man in 
5 



66 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 

his sixtieth year, with a cloth wrapped round his middle, 
and a handkerchief round his head. They talk and 
chatter all day long, with hardly any cessation. 

"My mornings are busily employed in giving direc- 
tions to the servants — providing food for the family, &c. 
At ten my teacher comes, when, were you present, you 
might see me in an inner room, at one side of my study 
table, and my teacher the other, reading Burman, writing, 
talking, &c. I have many more interruptions than Mr. 
Judson, as I have the entire management of the family. 
This I took upon myself, for the sake of Mr. Judson's 
attending more closely to the study of the language; yet 
I have found by a year's experience, that it was the 
most direct way I could have taken to acquire the 
language; as I am frequently obliged to speak Burman 
all day. I can talk and understand others better than 
Mr. Judson, though he knows more about the nature and 
construction of the language. 

" A new Viceroy has lately arrived, who is much be- 
loved and respected by the people. He visited us soon 
after his arrival, and told us that we must come to the 
government house very often. We have been once or 
twice since, and were treated with much more familiarity 
and respect than are natives of the country. 

"We often converse with our teachers and servants on 
the subject of our coming to this country, and tell them 
if they die in their present state they will surely be lost; 
But they say, 6 Our religion is good for us, yours for 
you.' But we are far from being discouraged. We are 
sensible that the hearts of the heathen, as well as those 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



67 



of Christians, are in the hands of God, and in his own 
time he will turn them unto him." 

In order that the reader may see how life passed with 
the missionaries, I here subjoin an extract from Mrs. 
Judson's history of the Burman mission: 

"Dec. 11, 1813. To-day, for the first time, I have 
visited the wife of the Viceroy. I was introduced to her 
by a French lady, who has frequently visited her. "When 
we first arrived at the government house, she was not up, 
consequently we had to wait sometime. But the inferior 
wives of the Viceroy diverted us much by their curiosity, 
in minutely examining everything we had on, and by 
trying on our gloves, bonnets, &c. At last her Highness 
made her appearance, dressed richly in the Burman 
fashion, with a long silver pipe in her mouth, smoking. 
At her appearance, all the other wives took their seats 
at a respectful distance, and sat in a crouching posture, 
without speaking. She received me very politely, took 
me by the hand, seated me upon a mat, and herself by 
me. She excused herself for not coming in sooner, say- 
ing she was unwell. One of the women brought her a 
bunch of flowers, of which she took several and orna- 
mented my cap. She was very inquisitive as to whether I 
had a husband and children, whether I was my husband's 
first wife — meaning by this, whether I was the highest 
among them, supposing that Mr. Judson, like the Bur- 
mans, had many wives; and whether I intended tarrying 
long in the country. 

"When the Viceroy came in, I really trembled, for I 
never before beheld such a savage looking creature. His 
long robe, and enormous spear, not a little increased my 



63 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



dread. He spoke to me, however, very condescendingly, 
and asked if I would drink some rum or wine. When I 
arose to go, her Highness again took my hand, told 
me she was happy to see me, that I must come to see 
her every day. She led me to the door; I made my 
salam, and departed. My object in visiting her was, 
that if we should get into any difficulty with the Burmans, 
I could have access to her, when- perhaps it would not 
be possible for Mr. Judson to have an audience with the 
Viceroy." 

A letter from Mrs. Judson to Mr. Newell, written at 
about the same date, says: 

" As it respects our temporal privations, use has made 
them familiar and easy to be borne; they are of short 
duration, and when brought in competition with the worth 
of immortal souls, sink into nothing. We have no 
society, no dear Christian friends, and with the excep- 
tion of two or three sea captains, who now and then call 
on us, we never see a European face. When we feel a 
disposition to sigh for the enjoyments of our native 
country, we turn our eyes on the miserable objects 
around. We behold some of them laboring hard for a 
scanty subsistence, oppressed by an avaricious govern- 
ment, which is ever ready to seize what industry has 
hardly earned. We behold others sick and diseased, 
daily begging their few grains of rice, which, when ob- 
tained, are scarcely sufficient to protract their wretched 
existence, and with no other habitation to cover them 
from the burning sun or chilly rains, than that which a 
small piece of cloth raised on four bamboos, under the 
shade of a tree, can afford. While we behold these scenes, 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



69 



we feel that we have all the comforts, and in comparison, 
even the luxuries of life. We feel that our temporal cup 
of blessings is full and runneth over. But is our tern* 
poral lot so much superior to theirs? how infinitely 
superior are our spiritual blessings ! While they vainly 
imagine to purchase promotion in another state of exis- 
tence, by strictly worshiping their idols, and building 
pagodas, our hopes of future happiness are fixed on the 
Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world. 
When we have a realizing sense of these things, my dear 
brother, we forget our native country and former enjoy- 
ments, feel contented and happy with our lot, with but 
one wish remaining — that of being instrumental in lead- 
ing these Burmans to partake of the same source of hap- 
piness with ourselves. 

"Our progress in the language is slow, as it is pecu- 
liarly hard of acquisition. We can, however, read, write, 
and converse with tolerable ease; aud frequently spend 
whole evenings very pleasantly in conversing with our 
Burman friends. We have been very fortunate in pro- 
curing good instructors. Mr. Judson's teacher is a very 
learned man, was formerly a priest and resided at court. 
He has a thorough knowledge of the grammatical con- 
struction of the language ; likewise of the Pali, the learned 
language of the Burmans." 

Mrs. Judson's health, never very strong, became sc 
much broken after one year's residence in Rangoon that 
medical aid was absolutely indispensable. As there was 
no possibility of procuring it where she was, she em- 
barked for Madras in January, 1815, to return, restored 
to health in April. This journey she took alone, as it 



70 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTIEE JUDSON. 



was not deemed expedient for Mr. Judson to lose any 
time whilst engaged in the arduous task of studying the 
language. 

After Mrs. Judson's return her health continued to 
improve, and, in September she became a mother. She 
had no assistant, no comforter at this trying time, ex- 
cepting her husband, of whose affectionate care she speaks 
most touchingly in her letters of this date. Upon her 
recovery she again commenced the study of the language, 
but the most severe trial which had yet befallen them 
was in store. When only eight months old, their little 
boy, their comfort and solace in their lonely situation, 
was taken to the other world. Mrs. Judson's letters 
evince, in a remarkable degree, the high religious tone, 
and unquestioning faith of her religious feelings. With 
a heart torn with anguish, the tenderest tie of a woman's 
heart severed, she never murmured. Resigned to the 
will of Providence, she said with a sincere heart, " Thy 
will be done," praying that out of the severe affliction 
her heart should come purified and strengthened. 

Close attention to study impaired Mr. Judson's health 
so much at this period, that for some months he was 
forced to desist from his labors, and take active exercise. 
Unwilling even then, to be idle, he employed his time in 
making a Grammar of the language of Burmah, for the 
use of future missionaries. A writer in the Calcutta 
Review speaks of this work as one of the most marvel- 
ous indications of Dr. Judson's powerful intellect, com- 
prising, as it did, in seventy-six pages, a complete gram- 
mar of one of the most difficult languages in the world. 

In October, 1816, the missionaries were gladdened by 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 71 



an addition to their company. Mr. Hough and his wife 
arrived from America, bringing with them from the Se- 
rampore brethren, a present of a printing press, types, 
and other printing apparatus. 

An extract from a letter written about this date, by * 
Mr. Judson, will show that their progress so far was 
slow : — 

"If any ask what success I meet with among the na- 
tives, tell them to look at Otaheite, where the Mission- 
aries labored nearly twenty years, and not meeting with 
the slightest success, began to be neglected by all the 
Christian world, and the very name of Otaheite was 
considered a shame to the cause of missions ; but now 
the blessing begins to descend. Tell them to look at 
Bengal also, where Dr. Thomas had been laboring seven- 
teen years, that is, from 1783 to 1800, before the first 
convert, Krishno, was baptized. When a few converts 
are once made, things move on. But it requires a much 
longer time than I have been here, to make a first im- 
pression on a heathen people. If they ask again, What 
prospect of ultimate success is there ? Tell them, as much 
as that there is an almighty and faithful God, who will 
perform his promises, and no more. If this does not sat- 
isfy them, beg them to let me stay and make the attempt, 
and let you come and give us our bread; or, if they are 
unwilling to risk their bread on such a forlorn hope, as 
has nothing but the word of God to sustain it, beg of 
them at least not to prevent others from giving us bread 
And if we live some twenty or thirty years, they may 
near from us again/ ' 

It was not until 1817, that Mr. Judson was able to 



72 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



write home that any Burman had inquired about the 
"new religion." The prospects, however, were most 
encouraging. Mr. Hough was busily engaged in print- 
ing, and Mr. Judson, in addition to his grammar, had 
written two tracts, and commenced his translation of the 
New Testament. In March, 1817, Mr. Judson wrote as 
follows : — 

" I have this day been visited by the first inquirer after 
religion, that I have seen in Burmah. For, although in 
the course of the last two years I have preached the 
gospel to many, and though some have visited me several 
times and conversed on the subject of religion, yet I have 
never had much reason to believe that their visits origi- 
nated in a spirit of sincere inquiry. Conversations on 
religion have always been of my proposing ; and though 
I have sometimes been encouraged to hope that truth had 
made some impression, never, until to-day, have I met 
with one who was fairly entitled to the epithet of In- 
quirer. 

" As I was sitting with my teacher, as usual, a Burman 
of respectable appearance, and followed by a servant, 
came up the steps, and sat down by me. I asked him 
the usual question, where he came from : to which he 
gave me no explicit reply, and I began to suspect that 
he had come from the government house, to enforce a 
trifling request, which in the morning he had declined. 
He soon, however, undeceived and astonished me by ask- 
ing, 6 How long a time will it take me to learn the reli- 
gion of Jesus V I replied that such a question could not 
be answered. If God gave light and wisdom, the religion 
of Jesus was soon learned \ but without God, a man might 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



73 



study all his life long and make no proficiency. But 
how, continued I, came you to know anything of Jesus ? 
Have you been here before ? 6 No.' Have you seen any 
writings concerning Jesus? 4 1 have seen two little 
books.' Who is Jesus ? ' He is the Son of God, who, 
pitying creatures, came into this world, and suffered 
death in their stead/ Who is God ? 'He is a Being 
without beginning or end, who is not subject to old age or 
death, but always is.' I cannot tell how I felt at this 
moment. This was the first acknowledgment of an eter- 
nal God that I had ever heard from the lips of a Burman. 
I handed him a tract and catechism, both of which he 
instantly recognized, and read here and there, making 
occasional remarks to his follower, such as, 4 This is the 
true God — this is the right way,' &c. I now tried to 
tell him some things about God and Christ, and himself, 
but he did not listen with much attention, and seemed 
anxious only to get another book. I had already told 
him two or three times, that I had finished no other book, 
but that in two or three months, I would give him a 
larger one, which I was now daily employed in transla- 
ting.- 'But,' replied he, 'have you not a little of that 
book done, which you will graciously give me now V 
And I, beginning to think that God's time was better 
than man's, folded and gave him the first two half sheets, 
which contain the first five chapters of Matthew; on 
which he instantly rose, as if his business was all done, 
and having received an invitation to come again, took 
leave. Throughout his short stay, he appeared different 
from any Burman I have met with. He asked no ques- 
tions about customs and manners, with which the Burmana 



74 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



tease us exceedingly. He had no curiosity, and no de- 
sire for anything, but 6 more of this sort of writing.' In 
fine, his conduct proved that he had something on his 
mind, and I cannot but hope that I shall have to write 
about him again. 

" March 24. We have not yet seen our inquirer ; but 
to-day we met with one of his acquaintances, who says 
that he reads our books all the day, and shows them to 
all who call upon him. We told him to ask his friend to 
come and see us again." 

Mrs. Judson, in the meantime, having conquered the 
difficult language, was occupied, independent of her 
household cares, in collecting around her the women of 
the place. She says, writing to a friend : — 

" How interested you would be, could you meet 
with my little society of females on the Sabbath ! In- 
terested, I say — yes, you would be interested, if it was 
only from this circumstance — that these poor idolaters 
enjoy the means of grace, and sit under the sound of the 
gospel. I have generally fifteen or twenty. They aie 
attentive while I read the Scriptures, and endeavor to 
teach them about God. One of them told me the other 
day, that she could not think of giving up a religion 
which her parents, grand-parents, &c., &c, had embraced, 
and accepting a new one, of w r hich they had never heard. 
I asked her if she wished to go to hell, because her pro- 
genitors had gone there. She replied, if with all her 
offerings and good works on her head, (speaking in their 
idiom,) she must go to hell, then let her go. I told her, 
if she went to hell after having heard of the Saviour, 
her very relations would contribute to torment and up- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 75 



braid her, for her rejection of that Saviour of -whom 
they had never heard, and that even she herself would 
regret her folly when it was too late. If I do, said she, 
I will then cry out to you to be my intercessor with your 
God, who will certainly not refuse you. Another told 
me that she did believe in Christ, and prayed to him 
every day. I asked her if she also believed in Graudama, 
and prayed to him. She replied, she worshiped them 
both. I have several times had my hopes and expecta- 
tions raised by the apparent seriousness of several 
females, as Mr. Judson has in regard to several men ; 
but their goodness was like the morning cloud and early 
dew, which soon passeth away. Four or five children 
have committed the catechism to memory, and often repeat 
it to each other." 

In December, 1817, Mr. Judson's health became so 
tseriously broken, that he determined to leave Rangoon, 
to visit Chittagong, intending to be absent about three 
months. Owing to several untoward circumstances, Mr. 
Judson was carried far from the scene he proposed visit- 
ing, to a station three hundred miles from Madras. He 
traveled by land to Madras, purposing to return imme- 
diately to Rangoon, but w T as detained in that city until 
July. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hough, and Mrs. Judson remained at 
Rangoon. For a short time, everything went on well. 
Mrs. Judson was kindly treated by the wife of the Vice- 
roy, and visited by the man whom Mr. Judson mentions 
as the first inquirer. At the expiration of the three 
months, which Mr. Judson had stated as the term of his 
absence, Mrs. Judson's firmness was called upon to sus- 



76 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JTJDSON. 



tain her in another severe trial. Her own words are th*, 
best for a description of this period. 

u Three months of Mr. Judson's absence had nearly 
expired, and we had begun to look for his return, when 
a native boat arrived twelve days from Chittagong, 
bringing the distressing intelligence, that neither Mr. 
Judson nor the vessel had been heard of at that port. 
I should not have given so much credit to this report, as 
to have allowed its harassing my feelings, had it not been 
corroborated by communications from my friends in Ben- 
gal, which arrived just at this time. From the circum- 
stance that the vessel had not reached the port of des- 
tination, I knew not what conclusion to draw. Hope, at 
times, suggested the idea that the ship's course might 
have been altered, that she might yet be safe ; but de- 
spondency more frequently strove to convince me that all 
was lost. Thus was I, for four months, in that agonizing 
state of suspense, which is frequently more oppressive 
than the most dreaded certainty. 

" Two or three days after the arrival of the above in- 
telligence, Mr. Hough received an order, couched in the 
most menacing language, to appear immediately at the 
court-house, to give an account of himself. This, so 
unlike any message we had ever before received from 
government, spread consternation and alarm among our 
teachers, domestics, and adherents, some of whom fol- 
lowed Mr. Hough at a distance, and heard the appalling 
words from some of the petty officers, that a royal order 
had arrived, for the banishment of all foreign teachers. 
As it was late when Mr. Hough arrived at the court- 
nouse, he was merely ordered to give security for his ap- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUB30N. 



77 



pearance at an early hour on the approaching day, when, 
to use their own unfeeling language, 4 if he did not tell 
all the truth relative to his situation in the country, they 
would w 7 rite with his heart's blood.' 

" Our embarrassments at this period were greatly in- 
creased by the circumstance that the Viceroy and family, 
who had always been our steady friends, had been 
recently recalled to Ava ; and the present Viceroy, with 
whom we had but a slight acquaintance, had left his fam- 
ily at the capital. Mr. Hough was not sufficiently ac- 
quainted with the language, to allow his appealing in 
person to the Viceroy ; and as it is not customary for 
females to appear at his court, in the absence of the Vice- 
reine, we had nothing before us but the gloomy prospect 
of being obliged to submit to all those evils, in the power 
of petty officers to inflict, when unprotected by higher 
authority. 

" The following days, Friday and Saturday, Mr. Hough 
was detained at the court-house, and under the necessity 
of answering, through an interpreter, the most trivial 
questions : such as, what were the names of his parents ? 
how many suits of clothes he had? &c, all of which were 
written down in the most formidable manner imaginable. 
The court would not allow his retiring for any refresh- 
ment ; and this, together with several other petty griev- 
ances, convinced us that it was their object to harass and 
distress us as much as possible, feeling safe in the idea 
that circumstances were such that we could not appeal 
to the Viceroy." 

As the purpose of the officers appeared to be to extort 
money from the missionaries, the order from government, 



78 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



upon which the summons to Mr. Hough was founded, 
applying only to Portuguese teachers, Mrs. Judson re- 
solved to appeal for protection to the Viceroy. A peti- 
tion was accordingly drawn up, with the assistance of 
Mrs. Judson's teacher; and with this in her hand, the 
intrepid woman presented herself before the Viceroy. 
The result was a command from him that Mr. Hough 
should be suffered to pursue his labors unmolested. 

The cholera morbus now began to commit fearful 
ravages amongst the natives, and the distress of the mis- 
sionaries was increased by rumors of a war between 
England and Burmah. It was now July, and Mr. Jud- 
son had not been heard from. Mrs. Judson writes thus 
to a friend : 

" Mr. Hough, for sometime past, has been desirous to 
have Mrs. Hough, myself, and his children, go to Ben- 
gal. But I have ever felt resolved not to make any 
movement until I hear from Mr. Judson. Within a few 
days, however, some circumstances have occurred, which 
have induced me to make preparations for a voyage. 
There is but one remaining ship in the river, and if an 
embargo is laid on English ships, it will be impossible 
for Mr. Judson (if he is yet alive) to return to this place. 
But the uncertainty of meeting him in Bengal, and the 
possibility of his arriving in my absence, cause me to 
make preparations with a heavy heart. Sometimes I 
feel inclined to remain here, alone, and hazard the con- 
sequences. I should certainly conclude on this step, if 
any probability existed of Mr. Judson's return. This 
mission has never appeared in so low a state as at the 
present time. It seems now entirely destroyed, as we 



LIFE OP ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



79 



all expect to embark for Bengal in a day or two. Alas ! 
alas! how changed our prospects since Mr. Judson left 
us ! How dark, how intricate the provideuce which now 
surrounds us ! Yet it becomes us to be still, and know 
that he is God, who has thus ordered our circumstances. 

" July 14. Alone, my dear friends, in this great 
house, without an individual, excepting my little girl 
and Burmans, I take my pen to relate the strange 
vicissitudes through which I have passed within a few 
days. 

" On the 5th of this month I embarked with Mr. 
Hough and family for Bengal, having previously disposed 
of what I could not take with me. I had engaged Mr. 
Judson's teacher to accompany me, that in case of meet- 
ing him in Bengal, he could go on with his Burman stu- 
dies. But the teacher, fearing the difficulties arising 
from his being a Burman, broke his engagement, and re- 
fused to go. My disinclination to proceed in the course 
commenced, had increased to such a degree, that I was 
on the point of giving up the voyage myself ; but my 
passage was paid, my baggage on board, and I knew not 
how to separate myself from the rest of the mission 
family. The vessel, however, was several days in going 
down the river ; and when on the point of putting out 
to sea, the captain and officers ascertained she was in a 
dangerous state, in consequence of having been impro- 
perly loaded, and that she must be detained for a day or 
two at the place in which she then lay. I immediately 
resolved on giving up the voyage and returning to town. 
Accordingly the captain sent up a boat with me, and en- 
gaged to forward my baggage the next day. I reached 



80 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



town in the evening — spent the night at the house of the 
only remaining Englishman in the place, and to-day 
have come out to the mission-house, to the great joy of 
all the Burmans left on our premises. Mr. Hough and 
his family will proceed, and they kindly and affection- 
ately urge my return. I know I am surrounded by dan- 
gers on every hand, and expect to see much anxiety and 
distress ; but at present I am tranquil, and intend to 
make an effort to pursue my studies as formerly, and 
leave the event with God." 

Alone, doubtful of her husband's fate, Mrs. Judson 
thus resolved to remain at Rangoon. Again her own 
words are quoted to show how her constancy was re- 
warded : 

u How will you rejoice with me, my dear parents, 
when I tell you that I have this moment heard that Mr. 
Judson has arrived at the mouth of the river ! This 
joyful intelligence more than compensates for the months 
of dejection and distress which his long absence has oc- 
casioned. Now I feel ashamed of my repinings, my 
want of confidence in God and resignation to his will. 
I have foolishly thought, because my trials were pro- 
tracted, they would never end, or, rather, that they 
would terminate in some dreadful event, which would 
destroy all hope of the final success of the mission. 
But now I trust our prospects will again brighten, and 
cause us to forget this night of afHiction, or to remember 
it as having been the means of preparing us for the re- 
ception of that greatest of blessings — the conversion of 
some of the Burmans.' ' 



LIcE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



8i 



CHAPTER V. 

ERECTION OF A ZAYAT — CONVERSION AND BAPTISM OF A 

NATIVE — DEATH OF MR. WHEELOCK MESSRS. JUDSON 

AND COLMAN START TO VISIT AVA. 

Having now been at the mission several years, mas- 
tered the language, published several tracts, and com- 
menced the translation of the Scriptures, Mr. Judson 
resolved to prosecute more actively the cause for which 
he had left home and country to live in a heathen land. 
He resolved to erect a small building for a zayat, or place 
of worship, and to begin to preach the gospel. This 
was a bold step. Up to this time the retired life of the 
missionaries, and the feelings of personal friendship en- 
tertained by the viceroy and his wife for them, had made 
their lives unmolested and safe. But to preach publicly 
a new doctrine utterly opposed to the religion of the 
country, was to instantly attract the notice of govern- 
ment, and, probably, to draw down its vengeance. For 
a Burman to renounce his religion was a crime punished 
by death, and it seemed highly improbable that govern- 
ment would be more tolerant towards strangers than to- 
wards natives. Still, having resolved to do all one man 
could do for the conversion of these benighted fellow- 
6 



82 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



creatures, Mr. Judson resolved to commence public wor- 
ship, trusting in God for protection. 

In April, 1819, the zayat was finished, and public wor- 
ship in the Burinan language commenced. Although 
Mr. Judson had been in the habit, from the first hour 
that he could speak the language, of discoursing with 
the natives, exhorting and conversing with them, he had 
never before attempted what might be called public wor- 
ship, or preaching. On the first day there were but fif- 
teen people present, and they were very disorderly and 
noisy. 

Mrs. Judson describes the zayat thus : 

" The zayat is situated thirty or forty rods from the 
mission-house, and in dimensions is twenty-seven by 
eighteen feet. It is raised four feet from the ground, 
and is divided into three parts. The first division is laid 
entirely open to the road, without doors, windows, or a 
partition in the front side, and takes up a third part of 
the whole building. It is made of bamboo and thatch, 
and is the place where Mr. Judson sits all the day long, 
and says to the passers by, ' Ho ! every one that thirst- 
ed,' &c. The next and middle division is a large airy 
room, with four doors and four windows, opening in op- 
posite directions ; made entirely of boards, and is white- 
washed, to distinguish it from the other zayats^ around 
us. 

"In this room we have public worship in Burman on 
the Sabbath ; and in the middle of which I am now sit- 
uated at my writing table, while six of the male scholars 
are at one end, each with his torch and black board, 
over which he is industriously bending, and emitting the 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDS0N. 83 

curious sounds of the language. The third, and last di- 
vision, is only an entry way, which opens into the garden, 
leading to the mission-house. 

" In this apartment, all the women are seated, with 
their lights and bl#ck boards, much in the same position 
and employment as the men. The black board, on which 
all the Burmans learn to read and write, answers the 
same purpose as our slates. They are about a yard in 
length, made black with charcoal and the juice of a leaf ; 
and letters are clearly imprinted with a species of white 
stone, a little similar to our slate pencils. A lesson is 
written out on this board by an instructer ; and when 
the scholar is perfect master of it, it is erased, and a 
new one written. The Burmans are truly systematic in 
their elementary instructions, and a scholar is not con- 
sidered qualified to read without spelling, until he has a 
perfect knowledge of all the various combinations of 
letters." 

Mrs. Judson's aid in translating was of infinite value 
at this period, to her husband. In addition to her la- 
bors in Burman, she also acquired the Siamese language, 
in order to be useful to the Siamese living in Rangoon. 

On the 30th of April, 1819, Moung Nau, the first 
convert to Christianity, made his first visit to the zayat. 
His visit was repeated, and it soon became evident that 
he was seeking, with an humble, sincere desire for truth, 
to know the new religion. He was a poor man, between 
thirty and forty years old, showing intelligence and do- 
cility. 

On the 9th of May, he made a profession of his belief 
in Jesus Christ in the zayat in the presence of a number 



84 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



of his countrymen. There now seemed an earnest spirit 
of inquiry awakened in the natives. Many came for 
tracts and portions of Scripture, whilst the zayat sel- 
dom was empty. Mr. Judson with the men, and Mrs. 
Judson with the women, passed the entire day in ex- 
horting, teaching, and conversing with the natives. 

Still, although many were manifestly interested, there 
was much fear from the government. All the natives 
agreed in saying that the introduction of a new religion 
would be obnoxious to the reigning powers, and dan- 
gerous both to the teachers and the natives embracing 
it. 

Many, who were favorably disposed towards Mr. Jud- 
son, advised him first to convert the Emperor, and then 
all would be well, for not only did he object to the re- 
ligion of foreigners, but persecuted to death any who 
deviated from the established religion, amongst his own 
subjects. 

On the 6th of June, Mr. Judson received from Moung 
Nau, a letter which I quote from his journal : 

"I, Moung Nau, the constant recipient of your excel- 
lent favor, approach your feet. Whereas my lords three 
have come to the country of Burmah, not for the purpose 
of trade, but to preach the religion of Jesus Christ, the 
Son of the eternal God, I, having heard and understood, 
am with a joyful mind filled with love. 

"I believe that the Divine Son, Jesus Christ, suffered 
death in the place of men, to atone for their sins. Like 
a heavy laden man, I feel my sins are very many. The 
punishment of my sins I deserve to suffer. Since it is 
bo, do you, sirs, consider that I, taking refuge in the 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



85 



merits of the Lord Jesus Christ, and receiving baptism, 
in order to become his disciple, shall dwell one vith 
yourselves, a band of brothers, in the happiness of 
heaven. It is through the grace of Jesus Christ, that 
you, sirs, have come by ship from one country and con- 
tinent to another, and that we have met together. I 
pray my lords three, that a suitable day may be ap- 
pointed, and that I may receive the ordinance of bap- 
tism. 

"Moreover, as it is only since I have met with you, 
sirs, that I have known about the eternal God, I venture 
to pray that you will still unfold to me the religion of 
God, that my old disposition may be destroyed, and my 
new disposition improved. " 

This letter being laid before Messrs. Colman and 
Wheelock, who had joined Mr. Judson in 1818, it was 
made the subject of special prayer, and as Moung Nau 
had given evidence of much faith and seemed truly to 
believe in Jesus and desire baptism, it was agreed to 
grant his petition. I again quote from Mr. Judson's 
journal: 

" June 27, 1819. Lord's-day. There were several stran- 
gers present at worship. After the usual course, I called 
Moung Nau before me, read and commented on an ap- 
propriate portion of Scripture, asked him several ques- 
tions concerning his faith, hope, and love, and made the 
baptismal prayer, having concluded to have all the pre- 
paratory exercises done in the zayat. -We then proceeded 
to a large pond in the vicinity, the bank of which is 
graced with an enormous image of Gaudama, and there 
administered baptism to the first Burman convert. Oh, 



86 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



may it prove the beginning of a series of baptisms in the 
Burman empire, which shall continue in uninterrupted 
succession to the end of time! 

%(, July 4. Lords-day. We have had the pleasure of 
sitting down, for the first time, at the Lord's table, with 
a converted Burman ; and it was my privilege — a privi- 
lege to which I have been looking forward with desire 
for many years — to administer the Lord's supper in two 
languages." 

Mrs. Judson speaks of the event, thus : 

" Little did I think, when I last wrote, that I should 
so soon have the joyful intelligence to communicate, that 
one Burman has embraced the Christian religion, and 
given good evidence of being a true disciple of the dear 
Redeemer. This event, this single trophy of victorious 
grace, has filled our hearts with sensations hardly to be 
conceived by Christians in Christian countries. This 
circumstance has convinced us, that God can and does 
operate on the minds of the most dark and ignorant; and 
that he makes his own truths, his own words, the instru- 
ment of operation. It serves, also, to encourage us to 
hope, that the Lord has other chosen ones in his place. 
As Mr. Judson has given some account of the first im- 
pressions of this man, and as I have had him particularly 
under my instruction since his conversion, I will give 
you some of his remarks in his own words, with which 
you will be much interested. ' In our religion, there is 
no way to escape the punishment due to sin ; but accord- 
ing to the religion of Christ, he himself has died in order 
to deliver his disciples. I wish all the Burmans would 
become his disciples ; then we should meet together as 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 8? 

you do in your country ; then we should all be happy 
together in heaven. How great are my thanks to Jesus 
Christ for sending teachers to this country ! and how 
great are my thanks to the teachers for coming ! Had 
they never come and built that zayat, 1 should never 
have heard of Christ and the true God. I mourn that 
so much of my life passed away before I heard of this 
religion. How much I have lost !' It is peculiarly in- 
teresting to see with what eagerness he drinks in the 
truths from the Scriptures. A few days ago, I was 
reading with him Christ's sermon on the mount. He was 
deeply impressed, and unusually solemn. 6 These words/ 
said he, 4 take hold on my very heart ; they make me 
tremble. Here God commands us to do everything that 
is good in secret, not to be seen of men. How unlike 
our religion is this ? When Burmans make offerings tc 
the pagodas, they make a great noise with drums and 
musical instruments, that others may see how good they 
are. But this religion makes the mind fear God; it 
makes it of its own accord fear sin.' When I read this 
passage, Lay not up for yourselves treasures, he said, 
' What words are these ! It does not mean that we shall 
take the silver and gold from this world, and carry them 
to heaven ; but that by becoming the disciples of Jesus, 
we shall live in such a manner as to enjoy heaven when 
we die.' We have taken him into our employ for the 
present, as a copyist, though our primary object was to 
ha,ve him near us, that we might have a better opportu- 
nity to know more of him before he received baptism, 
and of imparting to him more instruction than occasional 
visits could afford. Mornings and evenings he spends in 



88 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



reading the Scriptures, and when we all meet in the hall 
for family worship, he comes and sits with us ; though 
he cannot understand, he says he can think of God in his 
neart. 

"June ith. I have just had a very interesting meet- 
ing with the women, fifteen in number. They appeared 
unusually solemn, and I could not help hoping that the 
Holy Spirit was hovering over us, and would ere long 
descend and enlighten their precious, immortal souls. 
Their minds seem to be already prepared to embrace the 
truth, as their prejudices in favor of the Burman reli- 
gion are apparently destroyed. They also appear to be 
convinced that the atonement for sin provided in the gos- 
pel is suitable for persons in their situation. But they fre- 
quently say the great difficulty in the way of their be- 
coming Christians is, the sinfulness of their hearts, 
which they cannot yet overcome. Oh for the influences 
of that Spirit, which can alone effect the mighty change !" 

Death now visited the little band of missionaries, sum- 
moning to his eternal home, Mr. Wheelock. He left 
Rangoon for Bengal, in August, but in so low a state of 
health, that it seemed hopeless to think of his arrival 
there. On the passage, in the delirium of fever, he threw 
himself overboard, and was drowned: 

Slowly, but surely, the saving doctrines of Christian- 
ity were spreading amongst the Burmans at Rangoon. 
Day after day, public worship was held at the zayat, and 
many stopped to converse with the teachers. It is im- 
possible, in the limits of this work, to record the individ- 
ual cases of conversion. There was no startling rapidity 
in the movements of the missionaries. With the fear 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



59 



of incurring the displeasure of government constantly 
before them, the natives approached the teachers fearfully 
and cautiously, and combated the inroads of divine 
grace, with all the superstitious fervor of a nation strong 
in their religious faith, and conceited in their belief of 
the saving power of external works. 

Moung Shwa-gnong, a teacher, a man of intelligence 
and learning, after showing a keen interest in the inves- 
tigation of the merits of the new religion, was summoned 
before the Viceroy, and, the fear of displeasing the gov- 
ernment being stronger than his love for the new faith, 
he, for a time, ceased to inquire further from the teach- 
ers. The fact of one of their number having been sus- 
pected, caused the inquirers to tremble for their own 
safety; and the little congregation at the zayat, with 
the exception of a few actual converts, fell off entirely. 

Seeing how hopeless the task before them had become, 
Messrs. Judson and Colman resolved to leave Rangoon 
for a time, to visit Ava, the capital of the empire, and 
endeavor to obtain the permission of the emperor, to 
continue their religious instructions. Accordingly, in 
December, 1819, accompanied by Moung Nau, as a ser- 
vant, the two missionaries left Rangoon for Ava, leaviLg 
their families till their return. 



90 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



CHAPTER VI. 

VISIT TO AVA — RETURN TO RANGOON — FIRST FEMALE 

CONVERT BAPTIZED MRS. JUDSON'S ILLNESS MR. AND 

MRS. JUDSON SAIL FOR BENGAL. 

After a passage of thirty days up the Irrawadi, the 
missionaries arrived at Ava. They were kindly re- 
ceived by their old friend, the Viceroy at Rangoon, 
when Mr. Judson first established the mission, who had 
been called to a higher post at the capital, and his place 
filled by the Viceroy then presiding. They had taken 
with them, as a present to the Emperor, the Bible, in 
six volumes, covered in the Burman style, with gold leaf, 
and each volume enclosed in a rich wrapper. Mr. Jud- 
son thus describes their visit : 

January 26th, 1820. We repaired to the house of 
Mya-day-inen, former Viceroy of Rangoon, now one of* 
the public ministers of state, (woon-gyee.) We gave 
him a valuable present, and another of less value to his 
wife. They both received us very kindly, and appeared 
to interest themselves in our success. We, however, did 
not disclose our precise object, but only petitioned leave 
to behold the golden face. Upon this, his highness com- 
mitted our business to Moung Yo, one of his favorite 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 91 



officers, and directed him to introduce us to Moung Zah, 
one of the private ministers of state, (a-twen-woon,) with 
the necessary orders. 

" January 21th. We left the boat, and put ourselves 
under the conduct of Moung Yo. He carried us first 
to Mya-day-men, as a matter of form ; and there we 
learned that the emperor had been privately apprised of 
our arrival, and said, ' Let them be introduced.' We 
therefore proceeded to the palace. At the outer gate, 
we were detained a long time, until the various officers 
were satisfied that we had a right to enter, after which 
we deposited a present for the private minister of state, 
Moung Zah, and were ushered into his apartments in the 
palace yard. He received us very pleasantly, and or- 
dered us to sit before several governors and petty kings, 
who were waiting at his levee. We here, for the first 
time, disclosed our character and object — told him that 
we were missionaries, or 'propagators of religion;' that 
we wished to appear before the emperor, and present 
our sacred books, accompanied with a petition. He took 
the petition into his hand, looked over about half of it, 
and then familiarly asked several questions about our 
God and our religion, to w T hich we replied. Just at this 
crisis, some one announced that the golden foot was 
about to advance ; on which the minister hastily rose up 
and put on his robes of state, saying that he must seize 
the moment to present us to the emperor. We now found 
that we had unwittingly fallen on an unpropitious time, 
it being the day of the celebration of the late victory 
over the Kathays, and the very hour when his majesty 
was coming forth to witness the display made on the oc- 



92 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



casion. When the minister was dressed, he just said, 
1 How can you propagate religion in this empire ? But, 
come along.' Our hearts sank at these inauspicious 
words. He conducted us through various splendor and 
parade, until we ascended a flight of stairs, and entered 
a most magnificent hall. He directed us where to sit, 
and took his place on one side ; the present was placed 
on the other ; and Moung Yo and another officer of Mya- 
day-men sat a little behind. The scene to which we 
were now introduced, really surpassed our expectation. 
The spacious extent of the hall, the number and magni- 
tude of the pillars, the height of the dome, the whole 
completely covered with gold, presented a most grand 
and imposing spectacle. Very few were present, and 
those evidently great officers of state. Our situation 
prevented us from seeing the farther avenue of the hall ; 
but the end where we sat opened into the parade, which 
the emperor was about to inspect. We remained about 
five minutes, when every one put himself into the most 
respectful attitude, and Moung Yo whispered that his 
majesty had entered. We looked through the hall as 
far as the pillars would allow, and presently caught 
sight of this modern Ahasuerus. He came forward un- 
attended, in solitary grandeur, exhibiting the proud gait 
and majesty of an eastern monarch. His dress was rich, 
but not distinctive ; and he carried in his hand the gold- 
sheathed sword, which seems to have taken the place of 
the sceptre of ancient times. But it was his high aspect 
and commanding eye that chiefly riveted our attention. 
He strided on. Every head, excepting ours, was now in 
the dust. We remained kneeling, our hands folded, our 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



93 



eyes fixed on the monarch. When he drew near, we 
caught his attention. He stopped, partly turned towards 
us — 'Who are these?' ' The teachers, great king,' I 
replied. 4 What, you speak Burman ? the priests that 
I heard of last night ? When did you arrive ? Are you 
teachers of religion ? Are you like the Portuguese 
priest? Are you married ? Why do you dress so ?' These 
and some other similar questions we answered, when he 
appeared to be pleased with us, and sat down on an ele- 
vated seat, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword, and 
his eyes intently fixed on us. Moung Zah now began to 
read the petition ; and it ran thus : — 

" 6 The American teachers present themselves to receive 
the favor of the excellent king, the sovereign of land 
and sea. Hearing that, on account of the greatness of 
the royal power, the royal country was in a quiet and 
prosperous state, we arrived at the town of Rangoon, 
within the royal dominions, and having obtained leave 
of the governor of that town to come up and behold the 
golden face, we have ascended and reached the bottom 
of the golden feet. In the great country of America, 
we sustain the character of teachers and explainers of 
the contents of the sacred Scriptures of our religion. 
And since it is contained in those Scriptures, that, if 
we pass to other countries, and preach and propagate 
religion, great good will result, and both those who teach 
and those who receive the religion will be freed from fu- 
ture punishment, and enjoy, without decay or death, the 
eternal felicity of heaven, — that royal permission be 
given, that we, taking refuge in the royal power, may 
preach our religion in these dominions, and that those 



94 



LIFE OF' ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



who are pleased with our preaching, and wish to listen 
to and be guided by it, whether foreigners or Burmans, 
may be exempt from government molestation, they pre- 
sent themselves to receive the favor of the excellent king, 
the sovereign of land and sea.' 

" The emperor heard this petition, and stretched out his 
hand. Moung Zah crawled forward and presented it. 
His majesty began at the top, and deliberately read it 
through. In the mean time, I gave Moung Zah an 
abridged copy of the tract, in which every offensive sen- 
tence was corrected, and the' whole put into the hand- 
somest style and dress possible. After the emperor had 
perused the petition, he handed it back without saying a 
word, and took the tract. Our hearts now rose to God 
for a display of his grace. 6 Oh, have mercy on Bur- 
mah ! Have mercy on her king V But, alas ! the time 
was not yet come. He held the tract long enough to 
read the first two sentences, which assert that there is 
one eternal God, who is independent of the incidents of 
mortality, and that beside him, there is no God ; and 
then, with an air of indifference, perhaps disdain, he 
dashed it down to the ground. Moung Zah stooped for- 
ward, picked it up, and handed it to us. Moung Yo 
made a slight attempt to save us by unfolding one of the 
volumes, which composed our present, and displaying its 
beauty ; but his majesty took no notice. Our fate was 
decided. After a few moments, Moung Zah interpreted 
his royal master's will, in the following terms : £ Why 
do you ask for such permission ? Have not the Portu- 
guese, the English, the Mussulmans, and people of all 
other religions, full liberty to practise and worship ac- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



95 



cording to their own customs ? In regard to the objects 
of your petition, his majesty gives no order. In regard 
to your sacred books, his majesty has no use for them : 
take them away.' " 

Meeting with no encouragement from other officers, 
such as to make the prospect of a second petition being 
more successful than the first, Messrs. Colman and Jud- 
son returned to Rangoon. Three converts 4 had been 
made in Rangoon, and Mr. Judson called them together 
upon his return, fearing, almost expecting, that his re- 
port of the refusal of the emperor to extend protection 
towards their new religion, would shake their constancy. 
To his great joy they remained steadfast in their belief. 
He then spoke* of the dark prospect of Rangoon; the 
refusal of the natives to hear the truth, manifested in 
abandonment of the zayat, and announced his resolution 
to proceed to Chittagong. Upon hearing this resolve, 
the three converts implored the. teachers to stay, begging 
them to remain till there were a few more converts and 
one sufficiently advanced to preach to the rest. It was 
finally decided that Mr. and Mrs. Colman should pro- 
ceed to Chittagong, while Mr. and Mrs. Judson remained 
at Rangoon. 

Mr. Colman, however, proceeded to a new station, Cox 
Bazar, where, in 1822, he died. 

Mr. and Mrs. Judson, thus, once more found them- 
selves alone at Rangoon, but they were cheered and ani- 
mated by the spirit of enquiry now manifested amongst 
the natives, and the affectionate zeal of the three con- 
verts. Mrs. Judson labored as earnestly amongst the 



96 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



women, as her noble husband did with the male converts, 
and received visits daily from the wives and sisters of 
the natives. The translation of the Scriptures still oc- 
cupied much of Mr. Judson's time. 

In April, 1820, Mrs. Judson had an attack of liver 
complaint, and went through a course of salivation. 

In June, Mr. Judson writes : 

"June 27. Mrs. J., after having been through two 
courses of salivation for the liver complaint, at length 
despairs of recovering, without some proper medical as- 
sistance. For a few days, we have hoped that she would 
get some relief from the various applications which are 
made, though at the expense of an almost total exhaus- 
tion of strength ; but this morning, to our utter disap- 
pointment, the disorder has returned with increased vio- 
lence ; and her constitution appears to be rapidly failing. 
I have intended, for some time past, to send her alone 
to Bengal ; but she has become too weak, and the pre- 
sent circumstances of the case are too alarming to allow 
such a measure ; and I have, therefore, concluded to ac- 
company her." 

Accordingly preparations for the journey were made, 
and, on the 19th of July, Mr. and Mrs. Judson sailed 
for Bengal. 

On the 18th of July, the first female convert, Mah 
Men-la, was baptized, making the tenth Burman whc 
had gone through the solemn ceremony. 

It may be well at this point to sum up the progress 
made by the missionaries during their stay at Rangoon. 
They had acquired a perfect knowledge of the language 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 97 



a grammar, dictionary, several tracts, and a portion of 

the Scripture had been prepared, written, translated into 

Burmese, and printed. Ten converts, notwithstanding 

the fear of persecution by government, had been bap- 

tized in the name of the Lord. 
7 



dfl LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSOtf. 



CHAPTER VII. 

RETURN TO RANGOON MRS. JUDSON'S RENEWED ILLNESS — 

VOYAGE TO ENGLAND VISITS IN ENGLAND AND AMERICA 

— RETURN TO INDIA. 

Mrs. Judson, after a short sojourn in Calcutta, find- 
ing her health but little benefited by the climate there, 
removed to Serampore. She remained here until Jan ■ 
uary, 1821, when the violence of the disease having 
abated, she returned with Mr. Judson to Rangoon. 
They were received with eager demonstrations of joy, 
by the affectionate converts, and the many visitors who 
had been in the habit of repairing to the zayat. News 
of great importance, too, was awaiting them. An ex- 
tract from Mr. Judson's journal explains the event, and 
the hopes it inspired : 

" The most important event (and that relates of course 
to Moung Shwa-gnong) remains to be mentioned. It 
will be remembered that he was accused before the former 
Viceroy, of being a heretic, and that the simple reply, 
'Inquire further,' spread dismay amongst us all, and 
was one occasion of our visit to Ava. Soon after Mya- 
day-men assumed the government of this province, all 
the priests and officers of the village where Moung 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



99 



Shwa-gnong lives entered into a conspiracy to destroy 
him. They held daily consultations, and assumed a tone 
of triumph; while poor Moung Shwa-gnong's courage 
began to flag, and, though he does not like to own it, he 
thought he must flee for his life. At length, one of the 
conspiracy, a member of the supreme court, went intc 
the presence of the Viceroy, and in order to sound hit 
disposition, complained that the teacher Moung Shwa- 
gnong was making every endeavor to turn the priests' 
rice pot bottom upwards. 6 What consequence V said 
the Viceroy. ' Let the priests turn it bach again.' This 
sentence was enough ; the hopes of the conspiracy were 
blasted, and all the disciples felt that they were sure of 
toleration under Mya-day-men. But his administration 
will not probably continue many months.' ' 

A touching instance of the influence of Christianity 
upon these savage hearts awaited Mrs. Judson. The 
female convert Mah-Men-la, anxious to aid the great 
cause, voluntarily proposed to open a school for children 
in Rangoon, that the little ones need not go to the 
priests for education, but be early led to worship the 
true God. 

Still the little band of converts, although repairing 
frequently to the zayat for instruction and intercourse 
with the teachers, were cautious, and it was not gener- 
ally known that any Burmans had actually embraced 
the new religion. 

In August, sickness visited again these noble self-sac- 
rificing missionaries. Mr. Judson writes : 

" August 4^. Am just recovering from the second fit 
of sickness which I have had this season. The first wa*i 



100 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



the cholera morbus ; the present has been a fever. The 
second day after I was taken, Mrs. J. was taken with 
the same ; and for several days we were unable to help 
one another. Through divine mercy, however, we con- 
trived to get our medicines from time to time, and are 
now in a convalescent state, so far as the fever is con- 
cerned. Mrs. J., however, is suffering severely under 
the liver complaint, which, notwithstanding continual 
salivations, is making such rapid and alarming advances, 
as to preclude all hope of her recovery in this part of 
the world." 

Mrs. Judson grew worse so rapidly that it was evi- 
dent that a voyage to a colder climate was positively ne- 
cessary for the preservation of her life. Accordingly 
on the 21st of August she left Rangoon for Bengal, in- 
tending to take passage for America, and bearing to Mr. 
Hough the following letter from her husband : 

My dear Brother Hough: I send you herewith 
Mrs. Judson, and all that remains of the blue pills and 
senna, and beg you will see the articles all well packed 
and shipped for America by the earliest safe opportu- 
nity. Whatever expenses may be incurred be so good 
as to defray from your own funds, and transmit your bill 
to me. 

It is said that man is prone to jest in the depth of 
misery ; and the bon-mots of the scaffold have been col- 
lected : you may add the above specimen to the list if 
you like. I feel as if I was on the scaffold, and signing, 
as it were, my own death warrant. However, two years 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



101 



will pass away at last. Time and tide wait for no man, 
heedless alike of our joys and sorrows. 

When I last wrote, I was in the latter part of Acts ; 
since that time, I have done nothing at all. For ten 
days or a fortnight we were laid by with fever, unable 
to help one another, and no living soul to depend on but 
Emily ; and since we became convalescent, I have been 
occupied in making up my mind to have my right arm 
amputated, anct my right eye extracted, which the doctors 
say are necessary in order to prevent a decay and mor- 
tification of the whole body conjugal. 

A letter to Dr. Baldwin gives an account of Mrs. 
Judson's arrival in Calcutta, and the reasons for chang 
ing her proposed trip to America for one to England : 

Calcutta, Dec. 8, 1821. 

Rev. and dear Sir : 

I left Rangoon last August, and arrived in Calcutta 
on the 22d of September. My disorder gained ground 
so rapidly, that nothing but a voyage to sea, and the 
benefit of a cold climate, presented the least hope of 
life. You will readily imagine that nothing but the 
prospect of a final separation would have induced us to 
decide on this measure, under circumstances so trying as 
those in which we were placed. But duty to God, to 
ourselves, to the Board of Missions, and to the perishing 
Burmans, compelled us to adopt this course of proced- 
ure, though agonizing to all the natural feelings of our 
hearts. On my arrival in Calcutta, inquiries were im- 
mediately made relative to a voyage to America. But, 



102 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



to my great disappointment, I found most of the Ameri- 
can Captains far from being disposed to take passengers, 
on account of having their cargoes engaged to the ex- 
tent of the tonnage of their vessels. One captain, how- 
ever, offered to give me a passage for fifteen hundred 
rupees, but I could not think of causing the Board so 
great an expense. In mentioning my circumstances to 
Mrs. Thompson, (lady of the Eev. Mr. Thompson, chap- 
lain,) she suggested the advantages of a voyage to Eng- 
land, on account of the superior accommodations, medi- 
cal advice, and female passengers, in English ships. 
The pious captain of a ship bound to England was then 
residing in her family ; with him she consulted, and they 
made arrangements for my passage for five hundred ru- 
pees, provided I went in a cabin with three children, who 
were going to England. As my only object in going to 
sea, is restoration of health, I did not hesitate to secure 
a passage, though I should have rejoiced (since I must 
take a long voyage) to have gone direct to America. 
The father of the children has since arrived in Calcutta, 
and has very kindly offered to pay the whole price of the 
cabin, (which is four thousand rupees,) which will enable 
me to go to England, free of expense to the Board. 

If the pain in my side is entirely removed, while on 
my passage to Europe, I shall return to India in the 
same ship, and proceed immediately to Rangoon. But 
if not, I shall go over to America, and spend one winter 
in my dear native country. As ardently as I long to 
see my beloved friends in America, I cannot prevail on 
myself to be any longer from Rangoon than is absolutely 
necessary for the preservation of my life. I have had a 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



103 



severe struggle relative to my immediate return to Ran 
goon, instead of going to England. But I did not ven- 
ture to go contrary to the convictions of reason, to the 
opinion of an eminent and skilful physician, and the re- 
peated injunctions of Mr. Judson. 

Relative to the Rangoon mission, I presume Mr* 
Judson has given you all the information. But perhaps 
I have received letters of a later date, and may be able 
to communicate something, of which you may not have 
heard. My last from Rangoon was dated October 26, 
Moung Shwa-gnong had been accused before the Viceroy, 
and had disappeared. Mr. Judson had felt much 
anxiety and distress on his account, fearing he had done 
something in the way of retraction, which prevented his 
visiting him. But in a fortnight he was agreeably sur- 
prised at seeing him enter. Moung Shwa-gnong in- 
formed Mr. Judson. that, having been accused, he 
thought it the wisest way to keep out of sight ; that he 
had put all his family on board a boat, and was going 
up the country among the sect of heretics with whom he 
once associated, and had now come to take leave, obtain 
tracts, gospels, &c. Mr. Judson furnished him with 
what was necessary, and bid him God speed. He will, 
no doubt, do much good among that class of people; for 
it is impossible for him to be any time with his friends, 
without conversing on the subject of religion. Moung- 
Ing had returned as steadfast, and as much devoted to 
the cause as ever. He and Moung Shwa-ba spend every 
evening in reading the Scriptures, and finding the places 
where the apostles preached, on a map which Mr. Jud- 
son has made for them. Another Burman has been 



104 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JTJDSON. 



baptized, who gives decided evidence of being a true 
Christian. Have we not, my dear sir, every reason to 
trust in God in future, when we see what he has done in 
Rangoon ? Could you see at once the difficulties in the 
way of the conversion of the Burmans, the grace of 
God would appear ten times as conspicuous as it now 
does. When we hardly ventured to hope that we should 
ever see a truly converted Burman, how great is our joy 
to see a little church rise up in the midst of that wilder- 
ness, consisting of thirteen converted Burmans. 

A severe attack of her complaint confined her to her 
cabin for several days during her passage, but her health 
was improved upon her arrival in England. She was 
received by Joseph Butterworth, Esq., M. P., and urged 
to make his house her home during her residence in Eng- 
land. Whilst in his family she was visited by many of 
the persons most noted through England for piety and 
literary attainments. Amongst them were Wilberforce, 
Babington, and the king's chaplain, Sumner. She 
visited Scotland by the invitation of friends who de- 
frayed her expenses, and upon her return to Liverpool, 
other friends, hearing that she intended to sail for 
America in a packet, persuaded her to embark in a more 
commodious vessel, generously paying the price of her 
passage. 

In August, 1822, she embarked on board the Amity, 
for the United States. 

Mr. Price, in the meantime, had been sent by the 
Baptist Board to Rangoon, in the double capacity of 
Physician and Minister. He arrived in December of 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



105 



1821, and on the following January, Mr. Hough again 
joined Mr. Judson. 

Mrs. Judson arrived in New York, in September, but 
owing to the prevalence of yellow fever, did not land 
there, taking a steamboat passage for Philadelphia. It 
was her intention to make but a short visit there, and 
proceed immediately to Bradford, but her physician ad- 
vised her to go to Washington. 

Upon at length joining her dear relatives and friends in 
Bradford, she was subjected to a keen disappointment. 
She had hoped to pass the winter in the bosom of her 
family, and sail for Burmah in the spring. The severity 
of a New England winter, and the excitement of receiv- 
ing so many old friends, proved too much for a frame 
already enfeebled by disease, and the physician ordered 
her to the south, as the only hope of regaining her 
strength. As she had left her beloved husband, and her 
dear missionary labors, solely to gain renewed strength 
for her task amongst the Burmans, so, now, thinking only 
of the end to be gained, she tore herself from the newty- 
found haven of rest, to pass the winter in Baltimore. 

A letter written to Mrs. Chapin, during her residence 
there, shows that although enfeebled in health, she still 
devoted herself to the great cause in which her life's in- 
terest was absorbed ; and, as she could not then assist 
Mr. Judson in his personal labors amongst the Burmans v 
she strove to interest her friends in the United States, 
by writing a "History of the Burman Mission. " As 
soon as this work was published, she presented the copy- 
right of it to the Convention. I give her letter entire. 



106 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



TO MRS. CHAPLIN OF WATER VILLE. 

Baltimore, Dee. Vdth % 1822. 
My dear Mrs. Chaplin : — 

All your kind favors, dictated, I doubt not, by the 
sincerest affection, have been received, and demand from 
me an early communication, with a particular account of 
my present situation, plans, and prospects. I did intend 
writing you from Boston, but such was the state of my 
health and engagements with our dear friends in that 
city, that I was necessitated to defer it till the present 
cime. Relative to my leaving New England for the 
south, when you shall hear my reasons, you will, I dare 
say, join with me in thinking that duty to myself and 
Mr. Judson required my proceeding as I have. I had 
never fully counted the cost of a visit to my dear native 
country, and beloved relatives. I did not expect that a 
scene w r hich I had anticipated as so joyous, was destined 
to give my health and constitution a shock which would re- 
quire months to repair. During my passage from Eng- 
land, my health was most perfect, not the least symptom 
of my original disorder remained. But from the day of 
my arrival, the idea that I was once more on American 
ground, banished all peace and quiet from my mind, and 
for the first four days and nights I never closed my eyes 
to sleep ! This circumstance, together with dwelling on 
my anticipated meeting with my friends, occasioned the 
most alarming apprehensions. Still, however, I flattered 
myself, that after my first meeting with my friends was 
over, I should gradually recover my composure, and has- 
tened my departure for the eastward. I reached my father's 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 107 



in about a fortnight after my arrival in this country, and 
had not been able to procure a single night's sleep. The 
scene which ensued, brought my feelings to a crisis ; nature 
was quite exhausted, and I began to fear would sink. 
To be concise, my health began to decline in a most 
alarming manner, and the pain in my side and cough 
returned. I was kept in a state of constant excitement, 
by daily meeting with my old friends and acquaintances, 
and during the whole six weeks of my residence at my 
father's, I had not one quiet night's rest. I felt the cold 
most severely, and found, as that increased, my cough 
increased. 

You may not, perhaps, be aware of the circumstance, 
that Mr. Judson's only brother is a physician of some 
considerable skill, under government, and located for the 
winter in this city. During my stay at Bradford, his 
letters were most frequent and urgent, relative to my 
removal to the south, for the purpose of salivating, as 
the most dangerous consequences would ensue, should I, 
with my Indian constitution, salivate at the north. I 
saw that my disorder was rapidly gaining ground — my 
nervous system had become so much affected, that the 
very sight of an old dear friend was quite distressing, 
and 1 really desired to get away from the sight of every 
human being, as it had become very painful to talk. 
Thus situated, there was no hope of my recovery, as my 
father's house was thronged with visiters from day to 
day. Painful as it was to think of leaving my beloved 
family, I felt convinced, since it was my only object in 
visiting this country, duty required that everything should 
yield to endeavors to regain my health. I knew that 



108 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



retirement, and freedom from company and excitemenr, 
were as necessary as a milder climate, neither of which 
could be obtained in Bradford. My sister had made ar- 
rangements to accompany me ; but meeting in Boston 
with a pious man going on to Washington, and knowing 
I should receive the kindest attention when once with my 
brother, I desired her to return to Bradford to comfort 
my parents. 

I have been in this city about a fortnight, and am very 
comfortably situated with my brother at a boarding-house, 
where I refuse to receive company of every description, 
till my health is re-established. I find the climate mild 
and delightful — have the best medical attendance in the 
city, through the influence of my brother — have com- 
menced a course of mercury, which, I trust, through the 
blessing of God, will perfectly restore my health, and 
find my nervous system so far restored to its usual state, 
that I am able to study four and five hours every day. 
This, to me, is an unspeakable comfort, as I hope my 
time will not be entirely lost in my endeavors to regain 
my health. While in England, my friends repeatedly 
urged my writing an account of the Burman Mission, as 
so little information had hitherto been communicated. 
On my passage I made a beginning, in a " Series of Let- 
ters addressed to Mr. Butterworth," in whose house I 
resided during my stay in England. While at Bradford, 
I was unable to proceed in this work ; but since my ar- 
rival here, my freedom from interruption has enabled me 
to go on — and I find much pleasure in the consideration 
that I shall be able to give to my friends, not only in 
England, but America, that information relative to the 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



109 



Burman Empire, which my state of health forbids my 
verbally communicating. My object is, to give an ac- 
count of the American Baptist Mission to Burmah — its 
origin, progress, and success ; consisting principally in 
a compilation of those letters and documents transmitted 
to friends in America, interspersed with accounts of the 
population, manners, and customs, of the Burmans. 

Thus, my dear Mrs. C, have I been particular, and, 
I fear, tiresome, in my account of myself. But your 
kindness, your affectionate concern for my welfare, is all 
the excuse I have to offer. Your kind hint, relative to 
my being injured by the lavish attention of our dear 
friends in this country, has much endeared you to my 
heart. I am well aware that human applause has a ten- 
dency to elate the soul, and render it less anxious about 
spiritual enjoyments, particularly if the individual is con- 
scious of deserving them. But I must say, that since 
my return to this country, I have often been affected to 
tears, in hearing the undeserved praises of my friends, 
feeling that I was far, very far from being what they 
imagined, and that there are thousands of poor, obscure 
Christians, whose excellences will never be known in this 
world, who are a thousand times more deserving of the 
tender regard of their fellow christians than I am. Yet, 
I trust, I am grateful to my Heavenly Father for inclin- 
ing the hearts of his children to look on me with a 
friendly eye. The retired life I now lead, is much more 
congenial to my feelings, and much more favorable to 
religious enjoyment, than when in England and Ame- 
rica, where I was kept in a continual bustle of company. 
Yes, it is in retirement that our languishing graces are 



110 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



revived, our affections raised to God, and our souls re- 
freshed and quickened by the influences of the Holy 
Spirit. If we would live near the threshold of heaven, 
and daily take a glance of our promised inheritance, we 
must avoid not only worldly, but religious dissipation. 
Strange as it may seem, I do believe that there is some- 
thing like religious dissipation, in a Christian's being so 
entirely engrossed in religious company, as to prevent 
his spiritual enjoyments. 

Another letter to the same friend shows that her health 
was still feeble : 

TO MRS. CHAPLIN, OF WATERVILLE. 

Baltimore, Feb. 17, 1823. 
My ever dear Mrs. Chaplin : 

Your kind and affectionate letter found me in bed, sc 
weak that I was obliged to read it at intervals ; but it 
afforded heartfelt consolation. But, thanks to our 
Heavenly Father, whose guardian care and love I have 
so largely experienced, I am now much better, and once 
more enjoy the prospect of gaining that degree of health 
which will allow my return to Burmah ; there to pass 
my remaining days, few or many, in endeavoring to 
guide immortal souls to that dear Redeemer, whose pre- 
sence can make joyful a sick chamber, a dying bed. 
For the last month I have been very ill. The disease 
seemed to be removed from the liver to the lungs. I 
have raised blood twice, which the physicians thought 
proceeded from the lungs, though I am inclined to think 
to the contrary, and believe it came only from the mouth 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. Ill 

of some vessel in the throat. I was, however, bled so 
frequently and so largely that my strength was quite re- 
duced. At present I am free from every unfavorable 
symptom, but am still weak. 

I am rejoiced to hear that Mr. Boardman has offered 
himself to supply dear Colman's place. If actuated 
from motives of love to God, and concern for precious 
souls, tell him he will never regret the sacrifice, but will 
find those spiritual consolations, which will more than 
compensate for every privation. I shall rejoice to afford 
him every assistance in the acquisition of the language 
which my health will allow, though I fear he will not be 
ready to sail so early as I hope to embark. 

My dear Mrs. Chaplin, this is the third day I have 
been writing this letter, on account of my weakness. 
But I am gaining a little every day. Yesterday I had 
a little female prayer meeting in my chamber — trust the 
blessed Saviour was near us. Oh ! it is good to get near 
to God, to enjoy his presence, and feel, whether in life 
or death, we are his. Open your mouth wide, and I will 
Jill it, is a promise, of which we do not think sufficiently. 
How much real enjoyment we lose by not striving more 
earnestly to partake largely of the influence of the 
Holy Spirit ! 

Let us, my dear sister, so live, that our union to 
Christ, the vine, may not only be satisfactory to our- 
selves, but to all around us. On earth we serve God ; in 
heaven, enjoy him — is a motto I have long wished to 
adopt. When in heaven we can do nothing towards sav- 
ing immortal souls. 



112 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



A letter to her sister will give the reader a sketch of 
affairs in Burmah during her absence : 

TO ONE OF HER SISTERS. 

Baltimore, Feb. 25, 1823. 

My dear Sister : 

From the tenor of my last, I know you will all fee 
anxious to hear from me, consequently, I take the ear- 
liest opportunity to write you. My health is daily im- 
proving ; but, after being reduced so low as I have been, 
by bleeding from the arm, I must expect to gain very 
gradually. My liver complaint seems entirely removed, 
and were I not so very feeble, I would set off for Brad- 
ford to-morrow. But I can now ride only an hour at a 
time, and am much fatigued after that. But God has 
been kind, unspeakably kind to me, and enabled me to 
cast all my cares and concerns on him ; and I have fre- 
quently been led to say, it is good for me to be afflicted. 
There are some spiritual, heavenly minded Christians in 
this place, who have often refreshed me by their conver- 
sation and prayers. A few days ago, I had a prayer 
meeting in my chamber, and I trust Christ was one in 
the midst of us. Dr. Staughton sent me yesterday Mr. 
Judson's journal, lately received. God is doing wonders 
in Rangoon, and building up his little church there. 
Five more have been baptized, making eighteen in all, 
and several others seriously inquiring. Three females 
have lately been baptized, who formerly attended my 
Wednesday meeting. They have set up, of their own 
accord, a female prayer meeting. Is not this encourag- 
ing ? Dv. Price had received an order from the Em- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



113 



peror to go to Ava, on account of his medical skill; and 
Mr. Judson was about to accompany him, in order to 
make another effort for toleration. You will readily im- 
agine my anxiety to get back to Rangoon. I yet hope 
that my health will enable me to return this spring. 
that God would incline the heart of the Emperor to favor 
the introduction of the Christian religion, and protect 
the little church formed there. 

I hope to get to Bradford by the last of March. 
Brother E. will probably travel with me. But I must 
give up all idea of visiting and talking, on account of 
the weakness of my lungs. I have received a great 
many letters this winter, which have been a great con- 
solation in my retired situation. 

I am rejoiced to hear that there is a prospect of more 
attention to religion at Bradford. God will be inquired 
of by his children, and in answer to their prayers will 
pour out his Holy Spirit. 

Early in the spring of 1823 Mrs. Judson returned to 
Massachusetts, with her health partially restored, though 
not entirely. Many of her friends endeavored to per- 
suade her to remain in America another year, but she 
firmly resisted their entreaties, being anxious to return 
to the scene of her missionary labors. 

The Rev. Jonathan Wade and his wife had been ap- 
pointed by the Board missionaries to Burmah, and it was 
decided that they should accompany Mrs. Judson. On 
the 21st of June they sailed from Boston, arrived at 
Calcutta, Oct. 19th, and a few weeks later sailed for Ran- 
goon. 
8 



114 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 

Dr. Wayland speaks of Mrs. Judson in the following 

high terms : 

" It was my good fortune to become intimately ac- 
quainted with Mrs. Judson during this visit to the United 
States. I do not remember ever to have met a more re- 
markable woman. To great clearness of intellect, large 
powers of comprehension, and intuitive female sagacity, 
ripened by the constant necessity of independent action, 
she added that heroic disinterestedness which naturally 
loses all consciousness of self in the prosecution of a 
great object. These elements, however, were all held in 
reserve, and were hidden from public view by a veil of 
unusual feminine delicacy. To an ordinary observer, 
she would have appeared simply a self-possessed, well- 
bred, and very intelligent gentlewoman. A more inti- 
mate acquaintance would soon discover her to be a per- 
son of profound religious feeling, which was ever mani- 
festing itself in efforts to impress upon others the im- 
portance of personal piety. The resources of her na- 
ture were never unfolded until some occasion occurred 
wnich demanded delicate tact, unflinching courage, and 
a power of resolute endurance, even unto death. When 
I saw her, her complexion bore that sallow hue which 
commonly follows residence in the East Indies. Her 
countenance at first seemed, when in repose, deficient in 
expression. As she found herself among friends who 
were interested in the Burman mission, her reserve 
meited away, her eye kindled, every feature was lighted 
up with enthusiasm, and she was every where acknow- 
ledged to be one of the most fascinating of women. " 



LIFE OE ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



115 



CHAPTER VIII. 

MESSRS. JUDSON AND PRICE VISIT AVA — RETURN TO RAN- 
GOON — MRS. JUDSON'S ARRIVAL — REMOVAL TO AVA. 

In the meantime Mr. Judson and Mr. Price had pro- 
ceeded together to Ava. At first, in their visits to the 
palace, Mr. Judson, acting merely as an interpreter for 
his companion, was entirely unnoticed, but after several 
visits the Emperor addressed him. After questioning 
him as to his profession, he made the appalling enquiry, 
— Had any of his subjects embraced the Christian faith? 
Although he knew that the ruin of his little church was 
risked in the answer, Mr. Judson replied in the aflirma- 
tive. No token of displeasure, however, was given, and 
a lively conversation upon other topics ensued. 

The princes and princesses were much interested in 
Mr. Judson, and his visits to the palace, both with Mr. 
Price and alone, were frequent. He writes : 

"I had one noticeable interview with the king. Bro- 
ther Price and two English gentlemen were present. 
The king appeared to be attracted by our number, and 
came towards us ; but his conversation was directed 
chiefly to me. He again inquired about the Burmans 
who had embraced my religion. ' Are they real Bur- 



116 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



mans ? Do they dress like other Burmans?' &c. I had 
occasion to remark, that I preached every Sunday. 
' What ! in Burman V Yes. 4 Let us hear how you 
preach/ I hesitated. An Atwenwoon repeated *he 
order. I began with a form of worship, which first as- 
cribes glory to God, and then declares the commands of 
the law and the gospel ; after which I stopped. 6 Go 
on/ said another Atwenwoon. The whole court was 
profoundly silent. I proceeded with a few sentences, 
declarative of the perfections of God, when his majesty's 
curiosity was satisfied, and he interrupted me. In the 
course of subsequent conversation, he asked what I had 
to say of Gaudama. I replied that we all knew he was 
son of King Thog-dau-dah-nah ; that we regarded him 
as a wise man and a great teacher, but did not call him 
God. ' That is right/ said Moung K. N., an Atwen- 
woon who had not hitherto appeared very friendly to me. 
And he proceeded to relate the substance of a long com- 
munication, which I had lately made to him in the privy 
council room, about God and Christ, &c. And this he 
did, in a very clear and satisfactory manner, so that I 
had scarcely a single correction to make in his state- 
ment. Moung Z., encouraged by all this, really began 
to take the side of God before his majesty, and said, 
' Nearly all the world, your majesty, believe in an eternal 
God ; all, except Burmah and Siam, these little spots !' 
His majesty remained silent ; and after some other 
desultory inquiries, he abruptly arose and re tired/ ' 

After trying in vain, for some time, to procure a grant 
to build a zayat in Ava, Mr. Judson finally procured a 
piece of ground. Having recovered from an attack of 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JTJDSON. 117 



fever and ague, and the time having expired which Mr 
Judson purposed spending in Ava, he determined to re- 
turn to Rangoon. In January 1823, he writes : 

"Jan. 22. Took leave of Prince M. He desired me 
to return soon, and bring with me all the Christian Scrip- 
tures, and translate them into Burman ; ' for/ said he, 
i I wish to read them all.' 

" Jan. 24. Went to take leave of the king, in company 
with Mr. L., collector of the port of Rangoon, who ar- 
rived last evening. We sat a few moments conversing 
together. ' What are you talking about ?' said his ma- 
jesty. ' He is speaking of his return to Rangoon,' re- 
plied Mr. L. ' What does he return for ? Let them 
not return. Let them both (that is brother Price and 
myself) stay together. If one goes away the other 
must remain alone, and will be unhappy.' 6 He wishes 
to go for a short time only,' replied Mr. L., 6 to bring 
his wife, the female teacher, and his goods, not having 
brought anything w T ith him this time ; and he will return 
soon.' His majesty looked at me, 4 Will you then come 
again ?' I replied in the affirmative. ' When you come 
again is it your intention to remain permanently, or will 
you go back and forth, as foreigners commonly do V 
' When I come again it is my intention to remain perma- 
nently.' 'Very well,' said his majesty, and withdrew 
into his inner apartment. 

" Heard to-day of the death of Mah Myat-la, sister 
of Mah-Men-la, one of the most steadfast of the church 
in Rangoon. 

"Jan. 25. Embarked on a small boat, intending to 
go day and night, and touch nowhere, in order to avoid 



118 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSOft 



the robbers, of which we have lately had alarming ac- 
counts. 

" Feb. 2. Lords-day* At one o'clock in the morning, 
reached Rangoon, seven days from Ava. 

" Several of the disciples soon came over from Dahlah, 
on the opposite side of the river, whither they and some 
others of the disciples and inquirers have taken refuge, 
to escape the heavy taxations and the illegal harassments 
of every kind allowed under the new Viceroy of Ran- 
goon. Others of the disciples have fled elsewhere, so 
that there is not a single one remaining in Rangoon, ex- 
cept three or four with us. The house of some of the 
disciples has been demolished, and their place taken by 
government, at the instigation of their neighbors, who 
hate them on account of religion. Mah Myat-la died 
before the removal. Her sister gave me the particulars 
of her death. Some of her last expressions were — 6 1 
put my trust in Jesus Christ — I love to pray to him — 
am not afraid of death — shall soon be with Christ in 
heaven." 

In the year 1823, Mr. Judson finished the translation 
of the New Testament, and upon Mrs. Judson's return 
to Rangoon, he again proceeded to Ava, leaving Mr. 
and Mrs. Wade, and Mr. Hough and family at Rangoon. 

Mrs. Judson writes an account of her return, which I 
here quote: 

Ava, Feb. 10, 1824. 
My dear Parents and Sisters : 

After two years and a half wandering, you will be 
pleased to hear that I have at last arrived at home, so 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



119 



far as this life is concerned, and am once more quietly 
and happily settled with Mr. Judson. When I retrace the 
scenes through which I have passed, the immense space I 
have traversed, and the various dangers, seen and un- 
seen, from which I have been preserved, my heart is 
filled with gratitude and praise to that Being, who has 
at all times been my protector, and marked out all the 
way before me. Surely no one was ever more highly 
favored, no being was ever under greater obligations to 
make sacrifices for the promotion of God's glory, than I 
am at this moment. And I think I feel, more than ever, 
the importance of being spiritual and humble, and so to 
cherish the influences of the Holy Spirit, that in the 
communication of divine truth, powerful impressions may 
be made, and that I may no more wander from Him who 
is deserving of all my services and affections. 

I wrote from Rangoon, but for fear my letters should 
not have arrived, I will mention a few things therein 
contained. We had a quick and pleasant passage from 
Calcutta to Rangoon. Mr. J.'s boat was all in readiness, 
my baggage was immediately taken from the ship to the 
boat, and in seven days from my arrival, we were on our 
way to the capital. Our boat was small and inconvenient ; 
but the current at this season is so very strong, and the 
wind always against us, that our progress was slow, in- 
deed. The season, however, was cool and delightful; 
we were preserved from dangers by day and robbers by 
night, and arrived in safety in six weeks. The A-rah- 
wah-tee (Irrawaddy) is a noble river; its banks every- 
where covered with immortal beings, destined to the 
same eternity as ourselves. We often walked through 



120 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



the villages ; and, though we never received the least in- 
sult, always attracted universal attention. A foreign 
female was a sight never before beheld, and all were 
anxious that their friends and relatives should have a 
view. Crowds followed us through the villages, and 
some who were less civilized than others, would run some 
way before us, in order to have a long look as we ap- 
proached them. In one instance, the boat being some- 
time in doubling a point we had walked over, we seated 
ourselves down, when the villagers, as usual, assembled, 
and Mr. Judson introduced the subject of religion. 
Several old men who were present entered into conver- 
sation, while the multitude was all attention. The ap- 
parent school-master of the village coming up, Mr. Jud- 
son handed him a tract, and requested him to read. 
After proceeding some way, he remarked to the assem- 
bly, that such a writing was worthy of being copied, and 
asked Mr. Judson to remain while he copied it. Mr. 
Judson informed him he might keep the tract, on condi- 
tion he read it to all his neighbors. We could not but 
hope the Spirit of God would bless those few simple 
truths to the salvation of some of their souls. 

Our boat was near being upset in passing through one 
of the rapids, with which this river abounds. The rud- 
der became entangled in the rocks, which brought the 
boat across the stream, and laid her on one side. The 
steersman, however, had presence of mind sufficient to 
cut the rudder from the boat, which caused her to right, 
without experiencing any other inconvenience than a thor- 
ough fright, and the loss of our breakfast, which was pre- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



121 



cipitated from the fireplace into the water, together with 
everything on the outside of the boat. 

On our arrival at Ava, we had more difficulties to en- 
counter, and such as we had never before experienced. We 
had no home, no house to shelter us from the burning 
sun by day, and the cold dews at night. Dr. Price had 
kindly met us on the way, and urged our taking up our 
residence with him ; but his house was in such an un 
finished state, and the walls so damp, (of brick, and just 
built,) that spending two or three hours threw me into a 
fever, and induced me to feel that it would be presump- 
tion to remain longer. We had but one alternative, to 
remain in the boat till we could build a small house on 
the spot of ground which the King gave Mr. Judson last 
year. And you will hardly believe it possible, for I al- 
most doubt my senses, that in just a fortnight from our 
arrival, we moved into a house built in that time, and 
which is sufficiently large to make us comfortable. It is 
in a most delightful situation, out of the dust of the town, 
and on the bank of the river. The spot of ground 
given by his Majesty is small, being only 120 feet long, 
and 75 wide : but it is our own, and is the most healthy 
situation I have seen. Our house is raised four feet from 
the ground, and consists of three small rooms and a ver- 
andah. 

I hardly know how we shall bear the hot season, which 
is just commencing, as our house is built of boards, and 
before night, is heated like an oven. Nothing but brick is 
a shelter from the heat of Ava, where the thermometer, 
even in the shade, frequently rises to a hundred and eight 
degrees. We have worship every evening in Burman, 



122 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



when a number of the natives assemble; and every Sab- 
bath Mr. Judson preaches on the other side of the river, in 
Dr. Price's house. We feel it an inestimable privilege, 
that amid all our discouragaments we have the language, 
and are able constantly to communicate truths which can 
save the soul. 

My female school has already commenced with three 
little girls, who are learning to read, sew, &c. Two of 
them are sisters, and we have named them Mary and 
Abby Hasseltine. One of them is to be supported with 
the money which the " Judson Association of Bradford 
Academy' ' have engaged to collect. They are fine chil- 
dren, and improve as rapidly as any children in the world. 
Their mother is deranged, and their father gave them to me 
to educate, so that I have been at no expense for them ex- 
cepting their food and clothes. I have already begun to 
make inquiries for children, and doubt not we shall be 
directed in regard to our school. 

I have not yet been at the palace, the royal family all 
being absent. They returned to Amarapora a day or 
two after our arrival, where they will remain till the 
new palace in this city is finished, when they will take 
possession in the usual form, and Ava in future will be 
their residence. My old friend, the lady of the Viceroy 
of Rangoon, who died in my absence, came to the boat to 
see me immediately on being informed of my arrival. All 
her power and distinction ceased at the death of her hus- 
band, and she is now only a private woman. She is, 
however, a very sensible woman, and there is much more 
hope of her attending to the subject of religion now than 
when in public life. I intend to visit her frequently, and 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDS0N. 



123 



make it an object to fix her attention to the subject. 
In consequence of war with the Bengal government, 
foreigners are not so much esteemed at court as formerly. 
I know not what effect this war will have on our mission ; 
but we must leave the event with Him who has hitherto 
directed us. 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSOJf. 



CHAPTER IX. 

WAR IN BUR M AH — MRS. JUDSON's ACCOUNT OF THE MIS- 
SIONARIES' SUFFERINGS — TRIBUTE TO MRS. JUDSON FROM 
PRISONERS. 

War having broken out in 1824, between England 
and Burmah, scenes of unparalleled horror were opened 
before the missionaries. I make no apology for quoting 
entire, the account given by Mrs. Judson herself, of the 
sufferings and trials through which she and her husband 
passed, as any other language would inevitably be weak 
in comparison with hers. 

Rangoon, May 26th : 1826. 
My beloved Brother : — 

I commence this letter with the intention of giving 
you the particulars of our captivity and sufferings at 
Ava. How long my patience will allow my reviewing 
scenes of disgust and horror, the conclusion of this let- 
ter will determine. I had kept a journal of everything 
that had transpired from our arrival at Ava, but destroyed 
it at the commencement of our difficulties. 

The first certain intelligence we received of the decla- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 125 



ration of war by the Burmese, was on our arrival at 
Tsen-pyoo-kywon, about a hundred miles this side of 
Ava, where part of the troops, under the command of the 
celebrated Bandoola, had encamped. As we proceeded 
on our journey, we met Bandoola himself, with the re- 
mainder of his troops, gaily equipped, seated on his 
golden barge, and surrounded by a fleet of golden war 
boats, one of which was instantly despatched the other 
side of the river to hail us, and make all necessary in- 
quiries. We were allowed to pass quietly on, when we 
had informed the messenger that we were Americans, not 
English, and were going to Ava in obedience to the com- 
mand of his majesty. 

On our arrival at the capital, we found that Dr. Price 
was out of favor at court, and that suspicion rested on 
most of the foreigners then at Ava. Your brother 
visited at the palace two or three times, but found the 
king's manner toward him very different from what it for- 
merly had been ; and the queen, who had hitherto expressed 
wishes for my speedy arrival, now made no inquiries 
after me, nor intimated a wish to see me. Consequently, 
I made no effort to visit at the palace, though almost 
daily invited to visit some of the branches of the royal 
family, who were living in their own houses, out of the 
palace enclosure. Under these circumstances, we thought 
our most prudent course lay in prosecuting our original 
intention of building a house, and commencing missionary 
operations as occasions offered, thus endeavoring to con- 
vince the government that we had really nothing to do 
with the present war. 

In two or three weeks after our arrival, the king, 



126 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



queen, all the members of the royal family, and most 
of the officers of government, returned to Amarapora, 
in order to .ome and take possession of the new palace 
in the customary style. As there has been much mis- 
understanding relative to Ava and Amarapora, both 
being called the capital of the Burmese empire, I will 
here remark, that present Ava w^s formerly the seat of 
government ; but soon after the old king ascended the 
the throne, it was forsaken, and a new palace built at 
Amarapora, about six miles from Ava, in which he re- 
mained during his life. In the fourth year of the reign 
of the present king, Amarapora was in its turn forsaken, 
and a new and beautiful palace built at Ava, which was 
then in ruins, but is now the capital of the Burmese em- 
pire. The king and royal family had been living in 
temporary buildings at Ava, during the completion of the 
new palace, which gave occasion for their returning to 
Amarapora. 

I dare not attempt a description of that splendid day, 
when majesty, with all its attendant glory, entered the 
gates of the golden city, and amid the acclamations of 
millions, I may say, took possession of the palace. The 
saupwars of the- provinces bordering on China, all the 
viceroys and high officers of the kingdom, were assem- 
bled on the occasion, dressed in their robes of state, and 
ornamented with the insignia of their office. The white 
elephant, richly adorned with gold and jewels, was one 
of the most beautiful objects in the procession. The 
king and queen alone were unadorned, dressed in the 
simple garb of the country ; they, hand in hand, entered 
the garden in which we had taken our seats, and where 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 127 



a banquet was prepared for their refreshment. All the 
riches and glory of the empire were on this day exhib- 
ited to view. The number and immense size of the 
elephants, the numerous horses, and great variety of 
vehicles of all descriptions, far surpassed anything I 
have ever seen or imagined. Soon after his majesty had 
taken possession of the new palace, an order was issued 
that no foreigner should be allowed to enter, excepting 
Lansago. We were a little alarmed at this, but concluded 
it was from political motives, and would not, perhaps es- 
sentially affect us. 

For several weeks, nothing took place to alarm ul, and 
we went on with our school. Mr. J. preached overy 
Sabbath, all the materials for building a brick house were 
procured, and the masons had made considerable progress 
in raising the building. 

On the 23d of May, 1824, just as we had concluded 
worship at the doctor's house, the other side of the river, 
a messenger came to inform us tha.t Rangoon was taken 
by the English. The intelligence produced a shock, in 
which was a mixture of fear and joy. Mr. Gouger, a 
young merchant residing at Ava, was then with us, and 
had much more reason to fear than the rest of us. We 
all, however, immediately returned to our house, and 
began to consider what was to be done. Mr. G. went to 
Prince Thar-yar-wa-dee, the king's most influential bro- 
ther, who informed him he need not give himself any 
uneasiness, as he had mentioned the subject to his majesty, 
who replied, that " the few foreigners residing at Ava, 
had nothing to do with the war, and should not be ipo- 
lested." 



128 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



The government were now all in motion. An army 
of ten or twelve thousand men, under the command of 
the Kyee-woon-gyee, were sent off in three or four days, 
and were to be joined by the Sakyah-voon-gyee, who had 
previously been appointed Viceroy of Rangoon, and who 
was on his way thither, when the news of its attack 
reached him. No doubt was entertained of the defeat 
of the English ; the only fear of the king was, that the 
foreigners, hearing of the advance of the Burmese troops, 
would be so alarmed as to flee on board their ships, and 
depart before there would be time to secure them as 
slaves. " Bring for me," said a wild young buck of the 
palace, " six kala pyoo, (white strangers,) to row. my 
boat." "And to me," said the lady of a Woon-gyee, 
" send four white strangers to manage the affairs of my 
house, as I understand they are trusty servants." The 
war boats, in high glee, passed our house, the soldiers 
singing and dancing, and exhibiting gestures of the most 
joyous kind. Poor fellows! said we, you will probably 
never dance again. And it so proved, for few, if any, 
ever saw again their native home. 

As soon as the army were dispatched, the government 
began to inquire the cause of the arrival of the strangers 
at Rangoon. There must be spies in the country, sug- 
gested some, who have invited them over. And who so 
likely to be spies, as the Englishmen residing at Ava ? 
A report was in circulation, that Captain Laird, lately 
arrived, had brought Bengal papers which contained the 
intention of the English to take Rangoon, and it was kept 
a secret from his Majesty. An inquiry was instituted. 
The three Englishmen, Gouger, Laird, and Rogers, were 



LltE OF ANN HASSELTIKE JUDSON. 



129 



called and examined. It was found they had seen the 
papers, and were put in confinement, though not in prison. 
We now began to tremble for ourselves, and were in 
daily expectation of some dreadful event. 

At length Mr. Judson and Dr. Price were summoned 
to a court of examination, where strict inquiry was made 
relative to all they knew. The great point seemed to be, 
whether they had been in the habit of making communi- 
cations to foreigners, of the state of the country, &c. 
They answered, they had always written to their friends 
in America, but had no correspondence with English offi- 
cers, or the Bengal government. After their examination, 
they were not put in confinement as the Englishmen had 
been, but were allowed to return to their houses. In ex- 
amining the accounts of Mr. Gr., it was found that Mr. J. 
and Dr. Price had taken money of him to a considerable 
amount. Ignorant as were the Burmese of our mode 
of receiving money by orders on Bengal, this circum- 
stance, to their suspicious minds, was a sufficient evidence, 
that the Missionaries were in the pay of the English, and 
very probably spies. It was thus represented to the 
king, who, in an angry tone, ordered the immediate arrest 
of the " two teachers.' ' 

On the 8th of June, just as we were preparing for 

dinner, in rushed an officer, holding a black book, with 

a dozen Burmans, accompanied by one, whom from his 

spotted face, we knew to be an executioner, and a " son of 

the prison.'' 66 Where is the teacher ?" was the first 

inquiry. Mr. Judson presented himself. "You are 

called by the king," said the officer ; a form of speech 

always used when about to arrest a criminal. The 
9 



130 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



spotted man instantly seized Mr. Judson, threw him on 
the floor, and produced the small cord, the instrument 
of torture. I caught hold of his arm. " Stay, (said I,) 
I will give you money." " Take her too," said the officer ; 
"she also is a foreigner." Mr. Judson, with an imploring 
look, begged they would let me remain till further orders. 
The scene was now shocking beyond description. The 
whole neighborhood had collected — the masons at work 
on the brick house threw down their tools, and ran — the 
little Eurman children were screaming and crying — the 
Bengalee servants stood in amazement at the indignities 
offered their master — and the hardened executioner, with 
a kind of hellish joy, drew tight the cords, bound Mr. 
Judson fast, and dragged him off I knew not whither. 
In vain I begged and entreated the spotted face to take 
the silver, and loosen the ropes ; but he spurned my offers, 
and immediately departed. I gave the money, however, 
to Moung Ing to follow after, to make some further at- 
tempt to mitigate the torture of Mr. Judson ; but instead 
of succeeding, when a few rods from the house, the un- 
feeling wretches again threw their prisoner on the ground, 
and drew the cords still tighter, so as almost to prevent 
respiration. 

The officer and his gang proceeded on to the court- 
house, where the Governor of the city and officers were 
collected, one of whom read the order of the king, to 
commit Mr. Judson to the death prison, into which he 
was soon hurled, the door closed — and Moung Ing 
saw no more. What a night was now before me ! 
I retired into my room, and endeavored to obtain conso- 
lation from committing my case to God, and imploring 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



131 



fortitude and strength to suffer whatever awaited me. 
But the consolation of retirement was not allowed me, 
for the magistrate of the place had come into the veran- 
dah, and continually called me to come out, and submit 
to his examination. But previously to going out, I de- 
stroyed all my letters, journals, and writings of every 
kind, lest they should disclose the fact that we had cor- 
respondents in England, and had minuted down every oc- 
currence since our arrival in the country. When this 
work of destruction was finished, I went out and sub- 
mitted to the examination of the magistrate, who in- 
quired very minutely of everything I knew; then ordered 
the gates of the compound to be shut, no per&on to be 
allowed to go in or out, placed a guard of ten ruffians, 
to whom he gave a strict charge to keep me safe, and 
departed. 

It was now dark. I retired to an inner room with my 
four little Burman girls, and barred the doors. The 
guard instantly ordered me to unbar the doors and come 
out, or they would break the house down. I obstinately 
refused to obey, and endeavored to intimidate them by 
threatening to complain of their conduct to higher au- 
thorities on the morrow. Finding me resolved in disre- 
garding their orders, they took the two Bengalee serv- 
ants, and confined them in the stocks in a very painful 
position. I could not endure this ; but called the head 
man to the window, and promised to make them all a 
present in the morning, if they would release the serv- 
ants. After much debate, and many severe threatenings, 
they consented, but seemed resolved to annoy me as 
much as possible. My unprotected, desolate state, my 



132 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



entire uncertainty of the fate of Mr. Judson, and tho 
dreadful carousings and almost diabolical language of the 
guard, all conspired to make it by far the most distress- 
ing night I had ever passed. You may well imagine, my 
dear brother, that sleep was a stranger to my eyes, and 
peace and composure to my mind. 

The next morning I sent Moung Ing to ascertain the 
situation of your brother, and give him food, if still liv- 
ing. He soon returned with the intelligence that Mr. 
Judson, and all the white foreigners, were confined in 
the death prison, with three pairs of iron fetters each, 
and fastened to a long pole, to prevent their moving ! 
The point of my anguish now was that I was a prisoner 
myself, and could make no efforts for the release of the 
missionaries. I begged and entreated the magistrate to 
allow me to go to some member of government to state 
my case; but he said he did not dare to consent for fear 
I should make my escape. I next wrote a note to one 
of the king's sisters, with whom I had been intimate, re- 
questing her to use her influence for the release of the 
teachers. The note was returned with this message — 
she " did not understand it," — which was a polite refusal 
to interfere; though I afterwards ascertained that she 
had an anxious desire to assist us, but dared not on ac- 
count of the queen. The day dragged heavily away, 
and another dreadful night was before me. I endeav- 
ored to soften the feelings of the guard by giving them 
tea and cigars for the night ; so that they allowed me to 
remain inside of my room, without threatening as they did 
the night before. But the idea of your brother being 
stretched on the bare floor in irons and confinement, 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



133 



haunted my mind like a spectre, and prevented my ob- 
taining any quiet sleep, though nature was almost ex- 
hausted. 

On the third day I sent a message to the governor of 
the city, who has the entire direction of prison affairs, 
to allow me to visit him with a present. This had the 
desired effect ; and he immediately sent orders to the 
guards to permit my going into town. The governor 
received me pleasantly, and asked me what I wanted. 
I stated to him the situation of the foreigners, and par- 
ticularly that of the teachers, who were Americans, and 
had nothing to do with the war. He told me it was not 
in his power to release them from prison or irons, but 
that he could make their situation more comfortable ; 
there was his head officer, with whom I must consult, 
relative to the means. The officer, who proved to be one 
of the city writers, and whose countenance at the first 
glance presented the most perfect assemblage of all the 
evil passions attached to human nature, took me aside, 
and endeavored to convince me that myself, as well as 
the prisoners, was entirely at his disposal — that our fu- 
ture comfort must depend on my liberality in regard to 
presents — and that these must be made in a private way, 
and unknown to any officer in the government ! What 
must I do, said I, to obtain a mitigation of the present 
sufferings of the two teachers? u Pay to me," said he, 
" two hundred tickals, (about a hundred dollars,) two 
pieces of fine cloth, and two pieces of handkerchiefs. " I 
had taken money with me in the morning, our house 
being two miles from the prison — I could not easily re- 
turn. This I offered to the writer, and begged he would 



134 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



not insist on the other articles, as they were not in my 
possession. He hesitated for some time, but fearing to 
lose the sight of so much money, he concluded to take 
it, promising to relieve the teachers from their most pain- 
ful situation. 

I then procured an order from the governor, for my 
admittance into prison ; but the sensations produced by 
meeting your brother in that wretched, horrid situation, 
and the affecting scene which ensued, I will not attempt 
to describe. Mr. Judson crawled to the door of the 
prison — for I was never allowed to enter — gave me some 
directions relative to his release ; but, before we could 
make any arrangement, I was ordered to depart by those 
iron-hearted jailors, who could not endure to see us en- 
joy the poor consolation of meeting in that miserable 
place. In vain I pleaded the order from the governor 
for my admittance ; they again repeated, " Depart, or 
we will pull you out." The same evening the missiona- 
ries, together with the other foreigners, who paid an equal 
sum, were taken out of the common prison and confined 
in an open shed in the prison enclosure. Here I was 
allowed to send them food, and mats to sleep on ; but 
was not permitted to enter again for several days. 

My next object was to get a petition presented to the 
queen ; but no person being admitted into the palace, 
who was in disgrace with his majesty, I sought to present 
it through the medium of her brother's wife. I had 
visited her in better days, and received particular marks 
of her favor. But now times were altered : Mr. Judson 
was in prison, and I in distress, which was a sufficient 
reason for giving me a cold reception. I took a present 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



135 



of considerable value. She was lolling on her carpet as 
I entered, with her attendants around her. I waited 
not for the usual question to a suppliant, " What do you 
want?" but in a bold, earnest, yet respectful manner, 
stated our distressess and our w T rongs, and begged her 
assistance. She partly raised her head, opened the pre- 
sent I had brought, and coolly replied, " Your case is 
not singular ; all the foreigners are treated alike " 
"But it is singular," said I, " the teachers are Ameri- 
cans ; they are ministers of religion, have nothing to do 
with war or politics, and came to Ava in obedience to 
the king's command. They have never done anything 
to deserve such treatment ; and is it right they should 
be treated thus ?" " The king does as he pleases," said 
she, " I am not the king, what can I do?" "You can 
state their case to the queen, and obtain their release," 
replied I. " Place yourself in my situation, — were you 
in America, your husband, innocent of crime, thrown 
into prison, in irons, and you a solitary, unprotected fe- 
male — -what would you do?" With a slight degree of 
feeling, she said, "I will present your petition, — come 
again to-morrow." I returned to the house with consid- 
erable hope that the speedy release of the missionaries 
was at hand. But the next day Mr. Gouger's property, 
to the amount of fifty thousand rupees, was taken and 
carried to the palace. The officers, on their return, po- 
litely informed me they should visit our house on the 
morrow. I felt obliged for this information, and accord- 
ingly made preparations to receive them by secreting as 
many little articles as possible; together with considera- 
ble silver, as I knew if the war should be protracted, we 



136 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



should be in a state of starvation without it. But 
my mind was in a dreadful state of agitation lest it 
should be discovered and cause my being thrown into 
prison. And had it been possible to procure money from 
any other quarter I should not have ventured on such a 
step. 

The next morning, the royal treasurer, the governor 
of the north gate of the palace, who was in future our 
steady friend, and another nobleman, attended by forty 
or fifty followers, came to take possession of all we had. 
I treated them civilly, gave them chairs to sit on, tea 
and sweetmeats for their refreshment ; and justice obliges 
me to say that they conducted the business of confisca- 
tion with more regard to my feelings than I should have 
thought it possible for Burmese officers to exhibit. The 
three officers, with one of the royal secretaries, alone en- 
tered the house ; their attendants were ordered to remain 
outside. They saw I was deeply affected, and apolo- 
gized for what they were about to do, by saying that it 
was painful for them to take possession of property not 
their own, but they were compelled thus to do by order 
of the king. "Where is your silver, gold, and jewels ?" 
said the royal treasurer. " I have no gold or jewels ; 
but here is the key of a trunk which contains the silver 
— do with it as you please." The trunk was produced, 
and the silver weighed. "This money,'' said I, "was 
collected in America, by the disciples of Christ, and sent 
here for the purpose of building a kyoung, (the name of 
a priest's dwelling) and for our support, while teaching 
the religion of Christ. Is it suitable that you should 
take it?" (The Burmans are averse to taking what is 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



13T 



offered in a religious point of view, which was the cause 
of my making the inquiry.) " We will state this cir- 
cumstance to the king," said obs of them, " and perhaps 
he will restore it. But is this all the silver you have V 
I could not tell a falsehood : " The house is in your pos- 
session, " I replied, " search for yourselves." " Have 
you not deposited silver with some person of your ac- 
quaintance ?" "My acquaintances are all in prison, 
with whom should I deposit silver?" They next or- 
dered my trunk and drawers to be examined. The sec- 
retary only was allowed to accompany me in this search. 
Everything nice or curious, which met his view, was pre- 
sented to the officers, for their decision, whether it should 
be taken or retained. I begged they would not take our 
wearing apparel, as it would be disgraceful to take 
clothes partly worn, into the possession of his majesty, 
and to us they were of unspeakable value. They as- 
sented, and took a list only, and did the same with the 
books, medicines, &c. My little work table and rocking 
chair, presents from my beloved brother, I rescued from 
their grasp, partly by artifice, and partly through their 
ignorance. They left, also, many articles, which were 
of inestimable value during our long imprisonment. 

As soon as they had finished their search, and departed, 
I hastened to the queen's brother to hear what had been 
the fate of my petition, when, alas ! all my hopes were 
dashed by his wife coolly saying, " I stated your case to 
the queen, but her majesty replied, The teachers will not 
die ; let them remain as they are." My expectations had 
been so much excited, that this sentence was like a thun- 
der-clap to my feelings. For the truth at one glance 



138 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 

assured me that if the queen refused assistance, who 
would dare to intercede for me ? With a heavy heart I 
departed, and on my way home, attempted to enter the 
prison gate to communicate the sad tidings to your bro- 
ther, but was harshly refused admittance ; and for the 
ten days following, notwithstanding my daily efforts, I 
was not allowed to enter. We attempted to communicate 
by writing, and after being successful for a few days, it 
was discovered ; the poor fellow who carried the commu- 
nications was beaten and put in the stocks, and the cir- 
cumstance cost me about ten dollars, besides two or three 
days of agony, for fear of the consequences. 

The officers who had taken possession of our property, 
presented it to his majesty, saying, " Judson is a true 
teacher ; we found nothing in his house, but what belongs 
to priests. In addition to this money, there are an im- 
mense number of books, medicines, trunks of wearing 
apparel, &c, of which we have only taken a list. Shall 
we take them, or let them remain ?" " Let them re- 
main," said the king, " and put this property by itself, 
for it shall be restored to him again, if he is found inno- 
cent.' ' This was an allusion to the idea of his being a 

spy- 

For two or three months following, I was subject to 
continual harassments, partly through my ignorance of 
police management, and partly through the insatiable 
desire of every petty officer to enrich himself through 
our misfortunes. When the officers came to our house 
to confiscate our property, they insisted on knowing how 
much I had given the governor and prison officers, to 
release the teachers from the inner prison. I honestly 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



139 



told them, and they demanded the sum from the governor, 
which threw him into a dreadful rage, and he threatened 
to put all the prisoners back into their original place. I 
went to him the next morning, and the first words with 
which he accosted me were, " You are very bad : why did 
you tell the royal treasurer that you had given me so 
much money?" " The treasurer inquired; what could 
I say?" I replied. " Say that you had given nothing," 
said he, " and I would have made the teachers comfort- 
able in prison ; but now I know not what will be their 
fate." " But I cannot tell a falsehood," I replied. " My 
religion differs from yours — it forbids prevarication ; and 
had you stood by me with your knife raised, I could not 
have said what you suggest." His wife, who sat by his 
side, and who always, from this time, continued my firm 
friend, instantly said, " Very true — what else could she 
have done ? I like such straightforward conduct ; you 
must not (turning to the governor) be angry with her." 
I then presented the governor with a beautiful opera 
glass I had just received from England, and begged his 
anger at me would not influence him to treat the prison- 
ers with unkindness, and I would endeavor, from time to 
time, to make him such presents as would compensate 
for his loss. " You may intercede for your husband 
only ; for your sake, he shall remain where he is ; but let 
the other prisoners take care of themselves." I pleaded 
hard for Dr. Price, but he would not listen, and the same 
day had him returned to the inner prison, where he re- 
mained ten days. He was then taken out in consequence 
of the doctor's promising a piece of broadcloth, and my 
sending two pieces of handkerchiefs. 



140 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



About this period, I was one day summoned to the 
Loot-dau, in an official way. What new evil was befoie 
me, I knew not, but was obliged to go. When arrived, 
I was allowed to stand at the bottom of the stairs, as no 
female is permitted to ascend the steps, or even to stand, 
but sit on the ground. Hundreds were collected around. 
The officer who presided, in an authoritative voice began : 
" Speak the truth in answer to the question I shall ask. 
If you speak true, no evil will follow ; but if not, your 
life will not be spared. It is reported that you have com- 
mitted to the care of a Burmese officer, a string of pearls, 
a pair of diamond ear-rings, and a silver tea-pot, is it 
true?" "It is not," I replied; " and if you, or any 
other person, can produce these articles, I refuse not to 
die." The officer again urged the necessity of " speak- 
ing true." I told him I had nothing more to say on the 
subject, but begged he would use his influence to obtain 
the release of Mr. Judson from prison. 

I returned to the house with a heart much lighter than 
I went, though conscious of my perpetual exposure to 
such harassments. Notwithstanding the repulse I had 
met in my application to the queen, I could not remain 
without making continual effort for your brother's release, 
while there was the least probability of success. Time 
after time, my visits to the queen's sister-in-law were 
repeated, till she refused to answer a question, and 
told me, by her looks, I had better keep out of her pre- 
sence. For the seven following months, hardly a day 
passed, that I did not visit some one of the members of 
government, or branches of the royal family, in order to 
gain their influence in our behalf; but the only benefit 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



141 



resulting was. their encouraging promises preserved us 
from despair, and induced a hope of the speedy termina- 
tion of our difficulties, which enabled us to bear our dis- 
tresses better than we otherwise should have done. I 
ought, however, to mention, that by repeated visits to 
the different members of government, I gained several 
friends, who were ready to assist me with articles of food, 
though in a private manner, and who used their influence 
in the palace to destroy the impression of our being in 
any way engaged in the present war. But no one dared 
to speak a word to the king or queen in favor of a 
foreigner, while there were such continual reports of the 
success of the English arms. 

During these seven months, the continual extortions 
and oppressions to which your brother and the other 
white prisoners were subject, are indescribable. Some 
times, sums of money were demanded, sometimes pieces 
of cloth, and handkerchiefs ; at other times, an order 
would be issued, that the white foreigners should not 
speak to each other, or have any communication with 
their friends without. Then, again, the servants were 
forbidden to carry in their food without an extra fee. 
Sometimes, for days and days together, I could not go 
into the prison till after dark, when I had two miles to 
walk, in returning to the house. Oh, how many, many 
times have I returned from that dreary prison at nine 
o'clock at night, solitary and worn out with fatigue and 
anxiety, and thrown myself down in that same rocking 
chair which you and Deacon L. provided for me in Bos- 
ton, and endeavored to invent some new scheme for the 
release of the prisoners ! Sometimes, for a moment or 



142 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON 



two, my thoughts would glance toward America, and my 
beloved parents there — but for nearly a year and a half, 
so entirely engrossed was every thought with present 
scenes and sufferings, that I seldom reflected on a single 
occurrence of my former life, or recollected that I had a 
friend in existence out of Ava. 

You, my dear brother, who know my strong attach- 
ment to my friends, and how much pleasure I have hith- 
erto experienced from retrospect, can judge from the 
above circumstances, how intense were my sufferings. 
But the point, the acme of my distress, consisted in the 
awful uncertainty of our final fate. My prevailing opinion 
was, that my husband would suffer violent death, and 
that I should, of course, become a slave, and languish 
out a miserable though short existence, in the tyrannic 
hands of some unfeeling monster. But the consolations 
of religion, in these trying circumstances, were neither 
" few nor small.'' It taught me to look beyond this 
world, to that rest, that peaceful, happy rest where Jesus 
reigns, and oppression never enters. But how have I 
digressed from my relation ! I will again return. 

The war was now prosecuted with all the energy the 
Burmese government possessed. New troops were con- 
tinually raised and sent down the river, and as frequent 
reports returned of their being all cut off. But that 
part of the Burmese army stationed in Arracan, under 
the command of Bandoola, had been more successful. 
Three hundred prisoners, at one time, were sent to the 
capital, as an evidence of the victory that had been 
gained. The king began to think that none but Ban- 
doola understood the art of fighting with foreigners ; con- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



143 



sequently his majesty recalled him with the design of his 
taking command of the army that had been sent to Ran- 
goon. On his arrival at Ava, he was received at court 
in the most flattering manner, and was the recipient of 
every favor in the power of the king and queen to be- 
stow. He was, in fact, while at Ava, the acting king. 
I was resolved to apply to him for the release of the 
missionaries, though some members of government ad- 
vised me not, lest he, being reminded of their existence, 
should issue an immediate order for their execution 
But it was my last hope, and, as it proved, my last ap 
plication. 

Your brother wrote a petition privately, stating every 
circumstance that would have a tendency to interest him 
in our behalf. With fear and trembling I approached 
him, while surrounded by a crowd of flatterers ; and ont 
of his secretaries took the petition, and read it aloud. 
After hearing it, he spake to me in an obliging manner 
— asked several questions relative to the teachers — said 
he would think of the subject — and bade me come again. 
I ran to the prison to communicate the favorable recep- 
tion to Mr. Judson ; and we both had sanguine hopes 
that his release was at hand. But the governor of the 
city expressed his amazement at my temerity, and said 
he doubted not it would be the means of destroying all 
the prisoners. In a day or two, however, I went again, 
and took a present of considerable value. Bandoola was 
not at home, but his lady, after ordering the present to 
be taken into another room, modestly informed me that 
she was ordered by her husband to make the following 
communication — that he was now very busily employed 



144 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



in making preparations for Rangoon ; but that when he 
had retaken that place and expelled the English, he 
would return and release all the prisoners. 

Thus again were all our hopes dashed ; and w r e felt 
that we could do nothing more, but sit down and sub- 
mit to our lot. From this time we gave up all idea of 
being released from prison, till the termination of tho 
war ; but I was still obliged to visit constantly some of 
the members of government, with little presents, par- 
ticularly the governor of the city, for the purpose of 
making the situation of the prisoners tolerable. I gen- 
erally spent the greater part of every other day at the 
governor's house, giving him all the information relative 
to American manners, customs, government, &c. He 
used to be so much gratified with my communications, 
as to feel greatly disappointed, if any occurrence preven- 
ted my spending the usual hours at his house. 

Some months after your brother's imprisonment, I 
was permitted to make a little bamboo room in the prison 
enclosures, where he could be much by himself, and 
where I was sometimes allowed to spend two or three 
hours. It so happened that the two months he occu- 
pied this place, was the coldest part of the year, when 
he would have suffered much in the open shed he had 
previously occupied. After the birth of your little niece, 
I was unable to visit the prison and the governor as be- 
fore, and found I had lost considerable influence, pre- 
viously gained ; for he was not so forward to hear my 
petitions when any difficulty occurred, as he formerly had 
been. When Maria was nearly two months old, her 
father one morning sent me word that he and all the white 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 145 



prisoners were put into the inner prison, in five pairs of fet- 
ters each, that his little room had been torn down, and his 
mat, pillow, &c. been taken by the jailors. This was to 
me a dreadful shock, as I thought at once it was only a 
prelude to greater evils. 

I should have mentioned before this, the defeat of Ban- 
doola, his escape to Danooyboo, the complete destruction 
of his army and loss of ammunition, and the consterna- 
tion this intelligence produced at court. The English 
army had left Rangoon, and were advancing towards 
Prome, when these severe measures were taken with the 
prisoners. 

I went immediately to the governor's house. He was 
not at home, but had ordered his wife to tell me when I 
came, not to ask to have the additional fetters taken off, 
or the prisoners released, for it could not be done. I 
went to the prison gate, but was forbid to enter. All 
was as still as death — not a white face to be seen, or a 
vestige of Mr. J's. little room remaining. 1 was deter- 
mined to see the governor, and know the cause of this 
additional oppression, and for this purpose returned into 
town the same evening, at an hour I knew he would be 
at home. He was in his audience room, and, as I en- 
tered, looked up without speaking, but exhibited a mix- 
ture of shame and affected anger in his countenance. I 
began by saying, Your lordship has hitherto treated us 
with the kindness of a father. Our obligations to you 
are very great. We have looked to you for protection 
from oppression and cruelty. You have in many instances 
mitigated the sufferings of those unfortunate, though in- 
nocent beings, committed to your charge. You have 
10 



146 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



promised me particularly, that you would stand by me to 
the last, and though you should receive an order from the 
king, you would not put Mr. J. to death. What crime 
has he committed to deserve such additional punishment ? 
The old man's hard heart was melted, for he wept like a 
child. " I pity you, Tsa-yar-ga-dau, (a name by which 
he always called me,) I knew you would make me feel ; 
I therefore forbade your application. But you must be- 
lieve me when I say, I do not wish to increase the suf- 
ferings of the prisoners. "When I am ordered to execute 
them, the least that I can do is, to put them out of sight. 
I will now tell you, (continued he,) what I have never 
told you before, that three times I have received intima- 
tions from the queen's brother, to assassinate all the 
white prisoners privately ; but I would not do it. And 
I now repeat it, though I execute all the others, I will 
never execute your husband. But I cannot release him 
from his present confinement, and you must not ask it." 
I had never seen him manifest so much feeling, or so re- 
solute in denying me a favor, which circumstance was an 
additional reason for thinking dreadful scenes were be- 
fore us. 

The situation of the prisoners was now distressing 
beyond description. It was at the commencement of the 
hot season. There were above a hundred prisoners shut 
up in one room, without a breath of air excepting from 
the cracks in the boards. I sometimes obtained permis- 
sion to go to the door for five minutes, when my heart 
sickened at the wretchedness exhibited. ' The white pri- 
soners, from incessant perspiration and loss of appetite, 
looked more like the dead than the living. I made daily 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JtJDSON. 147 



applications to the governor, offering him money, which 
he refused ; but all that I gained was permission for the 
foreigners to eat their food outside, and this continued 
"but a short time. 

It was at this period that the death of Bandoola was 
announced in the palace. The king heard it with silent 
amazement, and the queen, in eastern style, smote upon 
her breast, and cried, araa ! ama ! (alas ! alas !) Who 
could be found to fill his place ? who would venture, since 
the invincible Bandoola had been cut off? Such were 
the exclamations constantly heard in the streets of Ava. 
The common people were speaking low of a rebellion, in 
case more troops should be levied. For, as yet, the com- 
mon people had borne the weight of the war ; not a tickal 
had been taken from the royal treasury. At length the 
Pakan Woon, who a few months before had been so far 
disgraced by the king as to be thrown into prison and 
irons, now offered himself to head a new army that should 
be raised on a different plan from those which had hitherto 
been raised, and assured the king in the most confident 
manner, that he would conquer the English, and restore 
those places that had been taken, in a very short time. 
He proposed that every soldier should receive a hundred 
tickals in advance, and he would obtain security for each 
man, as the money was to pass through his hands. It 
was afterwards found that he had taken for his own use, 
ten tickals from every hundred. He was a man of en- 
terprise and talents, though a violent enemy to all 
foreigners. His offers were accepted by the king and 
government, and all power immediately committed to 
him. One of the first exercises of his power was, to 



148 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



arrest Lansago and the Portuguese priest, who had hitherto 
remained unmolested, and cast them into prison, and to 
subject the native Portuguese and Bengalees to the most 
menial occupations. The whole town was in alarm, lest 
they should feel the effects of his power ; and it was 
owing to the malignant representations of this man, that 
the white prisoners suffered such a change in their cir- 
cumstances, as I shall soon relate. 

After continuing in the inner prison for more than a 
month, your brother was taken with a fever. I felt as- 
sured he w r ould not live long, unless removed from that 
noisome place. To effect this, and in order to be near 
the prison, I removed from our house, and put up a small 
bamboo room in the governor's enclosure, which w r as 
nearly opposite the prison gate. Here I incessantly 
begged the governor to give me an order to take Mr. J. 
out of the large prison, and place him in a more comfort- 
able situation ; and the old man, being worn out with my 
entreaties, at length gave me the order in an official form, 
and also gave orders to the head jailer, to allow me to go 
in and out, all times of the day, to administer medicines, 
&c. I now felt happy indeed, and had Mr. J. instantly 
removed into a little bamboo hovel, so low, that neither 
of us could stand upright — but a palace in comparison 
wdth the place he had left. 

Notwithstanding the order the governor had given for 
my admittance into prison, it was with the greatest diffi- 
culty that I could persuade the under jailer to open the 
gate. I used to carry Mr. J's. food myself, for the sake 
of getting in, and would then remain an hour or two, 
unless driven out. We had been in this comfortable sit- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



149 



uation but two or three days, when one morning, having 
carried in Mr. Judson's breakfast, which, in consequence 
of fever, he was unable to take, I remained longer than 
usual, when the governor, in great haste, sent for me. I 
promised him to return as soon as I had ascertained the 
governor's will, he being much alarmed at this unusual 
message. I was very agreeably disappointed, when the 
governor informed me that he only wished to consult me 
about his watch, and seemed unusually pleasant and con- 
versable. I found afterwards, that his only object was 
to detain me until the dreadful scene about to take place 
in the prison was over. For, when I left him to go to 
my room, one of the servants came running, and with a 
ghastly countenance, informed me that all the white pri- 
soners were carried away. I would not believe the re- 
port, and instantly went back to the governor, who said 
he had just heard of it, but did not wish to tell me. I 
hastily ran into the street, hoping to get a glimpse of 
them before they were out of sight, but in this was dis- 
appointed. I ran first into one street, then another, in- 
quiring of all I met, but no one would answer me. At 
length an old woman told me the white prisoners had 
gone towards the little river, for they were to be carried 
to Amarapora. I then ran to the banks of the little 
river, about half a mile, but saw them not, and concluded 
the old woman had deceived me. Some of the friends 
of the foreigners went to the place of execution, but 
found them not. I then returned to the governor to try 
to discover the cause of their removal, and the probabil- 
ity of their future fate. The old man assured me that 
he was ignorant of the intention of government to re- 



150 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



move the foreigners till that morning. That since I went 
out, he had learned that the prisoners were to be sent to 
Amarapora ; but for what purpose, he knew not. " I 
will send off a man immediately," said he, " to see what 
is to be done with them. You can do nothing more for 
your husband," continued he; "take care of yourself 
With a heavy heart I went to my room, and having no 
hope to excite me to exertion, I sunk down almost in 
despair. For several days previous, I had been actively 
engaged in building my own little room, and making our 
hovel comfortable. My thoughts had been almost en- 
tirely occupied in contriving means to get into prison. 
But now I looked towards the gate with a kind of melan- 
choly feeling, but no wish to enter. All was the stillness 
of death, no preparation of your brother's food, no ex- 
pectation of meeting him at the usual dinner hour, all 
my employment, all my occupations seemed to have 
ceased, and I had nothing left but the dreadful recollec- 
tion that Mr. Judson was carried off, I knew not whither. 
It was one of the most insupportable days I ever passed. 
Towards night, however, I came to the determination to 
set off the next morning for Amarapora ; and for this 
purpose was obliged to go to our house out of town. 

Never before had I suffered so much from fear in 
traversing the streets of Ava. The last words of the 
governor, "Take care of yourself," made me suspect 
there was some design w 7 ith which I was unacquainted. 
I saw, also, he was afraid to have me go into the streets, 
and advised me to wait till dark, when he would send me 
in a cart, and a man to open the gates. I took two or 
three trunks of the most valuable articles, together with 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 151 

the medicine chest, to deposit in the house of the gov- 
ernor ; and after committing the house and premises to 
our faithful Moung Ing and a Bengalee servant, who 
continued with us, (though we were unable to pay his 
wages,) I took leave, as I then thought probable, of our 
house in Ava, forever. 

On my return to the governor's, I found a servant of 
Mr. Gouger, who happened to be near the prison when 
the foreigners were led out, and followed on to see the 
end, who informed me that the prisoners had been car- 
ried before the Lamine Woon, at Amarapora, and were 
to be sent the next day to a village he knew not how far 
distant. My distress was a little relieved by the intelli- 
gence that our friend was yet alive, but still I knew not 
what was to become of him. The next morning I ob- 
tained a pass from government, and with my little Maria, 
who was then only three months old, Mary and Abby 
Hasseltine, (two of the Burman children,) and our Ben- 
galee cook, who was the only one of the party that 
could afford me any assistance, I set off for Amarapora. 
The day was dreadfully hot ; but we obtained a covered 
boat, in which we were tolerably comfortable, till within 
two miles of the government house. I then procured a 
cart ; but the violent motion, together with the dreadful 
heat and dust, made me almost distracted. But what 
was my disappointment on my arriving at the court- 
house to find that the prisoners had been sent on two 
hours before, and that I must go, in that uncomfortable 
mode, four miles further, with little Maria m my arms, 
whom I held all the way from Ava. The cart man re- 
fused to go any further ; and, after waiting an hour in 



152 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



the burning sun, I procured another and set off for that 
never to be forgotten place, Oung-pen-la. I obtained a 
guide from the governor, and was conducted directly to 
the prison yard. But what a scene of wretchedness was 
presented to my view ! The prison was an old, shattered 
building, without a roof ; the fence was entirely de- 
stroyed ; eight or ten Burmese were on the top of the 
building, trying to make something like a shelter with 
leaves ; while under a little low projection outside of the 
prison sat the foreigners, chained together two and two, 
almost dead with suffering and fatigue. The first words 
of your brother were, " Why have you come ? I hoped 
you would not, follow, for you cannot live here." It was 
now dark. I had no refreshment for the suffering 
prisoners, or for myself, as I had expected to procure all 
that was necessary at the market of Amarapora, and I 
had no shelter for the night. I asked one of the jailers 
if I might put up a little bamboo house near the prison ; 
he said, no, it was not customary. I then begged he 
would procure me a shelter for the night, when on the 
morrow I could find some place to live in. He took me to 
his house, in which there were only two small rooms — one 
in which he and his family lived — the other, which was 
then half full of grain, he offered me ; and in that little, 
filthy place I spent the next six months of wretchedness. 
I procured some half boiled water, instead of my tea, 
and, worn out with fatigue, laid myself down on a mat 
spread over the paddy, and endeavored to obtain a little 
refreshment from sleep. The next morning your brother 
gave me the following account of the brutal treatment 
he had received on being taken out of prison : 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 153 



As soon as I had gone out at the call of the governor, 
one of the jailors rushed into Mr. J's little room — 
roughly seized him by the arm — pulled him out — stripped 
him of all his clothes, excepting his shirt and pantaloons 
— took his shoes, hat, and all his bedding — tore off his 
chains — tied a rope round his waist, and dragged him to 
the court-house, where the other prisoners had previouly 
been taken. They were then tied two and two, and de- 
livered into the hands of the Lamine Woon, who went 
on before them on horseback, while his slaves drove the 
prisoners, one of the slaves holding the rope which con- 
nected two of them together. It was in May, one of 
the hottest months in the year, and eleven o'clock in the 
day, so that the sun was intolerable, indeed. They had 
proceeded only half a mile when your brother's feet be- 
came blistered, and so great was his agony, even at this 
early period, that, as they were crossing the little river, 
he ardently longed to throw himself into the water to be 
free from misery. But the sin attached to such an act 
alone prevented. They had then eight miles to walk. 
The sand and gravel were like burning coals to the feet 
of the prisoners, which soon became perfectly destitute 
of skin ; and, in this wretched state, they were goaded 
on by their unfeeling drivers. Mr. J.'s debilitated state, 
in consequence of fever, and having taken no food that 
morning rendered him less capable of bearing such hard- 
ships than the other prisoners. When about half way 
on their journey, as they stopped for water, your brother 
begged the Lamine Woon to allow him to ride his horse 
a mile or two, as he could proceed no farther in that 
dreadful state. But a scornful, malignant look, was all 



15s 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



the reply that was made. He then requested Captain 
Laird, who was tied with him, and who was a strong, 
healthy man, to allow him to take hold of his shoulder, 
as he was fast sinking. This the kind-hearted man 
granted for a mile or two, but then found the additional 
burden insupportable. Just at that period Mr. Gouger's 
Bengalee servant came up to them, and seeing the dis- 
tress of your brother, took off his head-dress, which 
was made of cloth, tore it in two, gave half to his master 
and half to Mr. Judson, which he instantly wrapped 
around his wounded feet, as they were not allowed to 
rest even for a moment. The servant then offered his 
shoulder to Mr. Judson, who was almost carried by him 
the remainder of the way. Had it not been for the sup- 
port and assistance of this man, your brother thinks he 
should have shared the fate of the poor Greek, who was 
one of their number, and when taken out of prison that 
morning was in perfect health. But he was a corpulent 
man, and the sun affected him so much that he fell down 
on the way. His inhuman drivers beat and dragged him 
until they themselves were wearied, when they procured 
a cart, in which he was carried the remaining two miles. 
But the poor creature expired in an hour or two after 
their arrival at the court-house. The Lamine Woon, 
seeing the distressing state of the prisoners, and that 
one of their number was dead, concluded they should go 
no further that night, otherwise they would have been 
driven on until they reached Oung-pen-la the same day. 

An old shed was appointed for their abode during the 
night, but without even a mat • or pillow, or anything to 
cover them. The curiosity of the Lamine Woon's wife, 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



155 



induced her to make a visit to the prisoners, whose 
wretchedness considerably excited her compassion, and 
she ordered some fruit, sugar, and tamarinds, for their 
refreshment ; and the next morning rice was prepared 
for them, and as poor as it was, it was refreshing to the 
prisoners, who had been almost destitute of food the day 
before. Carts were also provided for their conveyance, 
as none of them were able to walk. All this time the 
foreigners were entirely ignorant of what was to become 
of them; and when they arrived at Oung-pen-la, and 
saw the dilapidated state of the prison, they immediately, 
all as one, concluded that they were there to be burnt, 
agreeably to the report which had previously been in 
circulation at Ava. They all endeavored to prepare 
themselves for the awful scene anticipated; and it was 
not until they saw preparations making for repairing the 
prison that they had the least doubt that a cruel, linger- 
ing death awaited them. My arrival was in an hour or 
two after this. 

The next morning I arose and endeavored to find 
something like food. But there was no market, and 
nothing to be procured. One of Dr. Price's friends, 
however, brought some cold rice and vegetable curry 
from Amarapora, which, together with a cup of tea from 
Mr. Lansago, answered for the breakfast of the prison- 
ers ; and for dinner we made a curry of dried salt fish, 
which a servant of Mr. Gouger had brought. All the 
money I could command in the world I had brought with 
me, secreted about my person ; so you may judge what 
our prospects were, in case the war should continue long. 
But our Heavenly Father was better to us than our 



156 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



fears; for, notwithstanding the constant extortions of 
the jailers, during the whole six months we were at 
Oung-pen-la, and the frequent straits to which we were 
brought, we never really suffered for the want of money, 
though frequently for want of provisions, which were not 
procurable. Here at this place my personal bodily suf- 
ferings commenced. While your brother was confined 
in the city prison, I had been allowed to remain in our 
house, in which I had many conveniences left, and my 
health had continued good beyond all expectations. 
But now I had not a single article of convenience — not 
even a chair or seat of any kind, excepting a bamboo 
floor. 

The very morning after my arrival, Mary Hasseltine 
was taken with the small pox, the natural way. She, 
though very young, was the only assistant I had in taking 
care of little Maria. But she now required all the time 
I could spare from Mr. Judson, whose fever still con- 
tinued in prison, and whose feet were so dreadfully man- 
gled that for several days he was unable to move. I 
knew not what to do, for I could procure no assistance 
from the neighborhood, or medicine for the sufferers, but 
was all day long going backwards and forwards from the 
house to the prison, with little Maria in my arms. 
Sometimes I was greatly relieved by leaving her for an 
hour, when asleep, by the side of her father, while I re- 
turned to the house to look after Mary, whose fever ran 
so high as to produce delirium. She was so completely 
covered with the small pox that there was no distinction 
in the pustules. As she was in the same little room with 
myself I knew Maria would take it ; I therefore inocu- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 157 



lated her from another child, before Mary's had arrived 
at such a state as to be infectious. It the same time I 
inoculated Abby and the jailor's children, who all had 
it so lightly as hardly to interrupt their play. But the 
inoculation in the arm of my poor little Maria did not 
take — she caught it of Mary, and had it the natural way. 
She was then only three months and a half old, and had 
been a most healthy child ; but it was above three months 
before she perfectly recovered from the effects of this 
dreadful disorder. 

You will recollect I never had the small pox, but was 
vaccinated previously to leaving America. In conse- 
quence of being for so long a time constantly exposed, 
I had nearly a hundred postules formed, though no pre- 
vious symptoms of fever, &c. The jailer's children 
having had the small pox so lightly, in consequence of 
inoculation, my fame was spread all over the village, 
and every child, young and old, who had not previously 
had it, was brought for inoculation. And although I 
knew nothing about the disorder, or the mode of treating 
it, I inoculated the mall with a needle, and told them 
to take care of their diet, — all the instructions I could 
give them. Mr. Judson's health was gradually restored, 
and he found himself much more comfortably situated, 
than when in the city prison. 

The prisoners were at first chained two and two; but 
as soon as the jailers could obtain chains sufficient, they 
were separated, and each prisoner had but one pair. 
The prison was repaired, a new fence made, and a large 
airy shed erected in front of the prison, where the 
prisoners were allowed to remain during the day, though 



158 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



locked up in the little close prison at night. All the 
children recovered from the small pox ; but my watchings 
and fatigue, together with my miserable food, and more 
miserable lodgings, brought on one of the diseases of 
the country, which is almost always fatal to foreigners. 
My constitution seemed destroyed, and in a few days I 
became so weak as to be hardly able to walk to Mr. 
Judson's prison. In this debilitated state, I set off in a 
cart for Ava, to procure medicines, and some suitable 
food, leaving the cook to supply my place. I reached 
the house in safety, and for two or three days the dis- 
order seemed at a stand ; after which it attacked me so 
violently, that I had no hopes of recovery left — and my 
only anxiety now was, to return to Oung-pen-la to die 
near the prison. It was with the greatest difficulty that 
I obtained the medicine chest from the governor, and 
then had no one to administer medicine. I however got 
at the laudanum, and by taking two drops at a time for 
several hours, it so far checked the disorder, as to en- 
able me to get on board a boat, though so weak that I 
could not stand, and again set off for Oung-pen-la. The 
last four miles was in that painful conveyance, the cart, 
and in the midst of the rainy season, when the mud 
almost buries the oxen. You may form some idea of a 
Burmese cart, when I tell you their wheels are not con- 
structed like ours, but are simply round thick planks 
with a h^le in the middle, through which a pole that 
supports the body is thrust. 

I just reached Oung pen-la, when my strength seemed 
entirely exhausted. The good native cook came out to 
help me into the house ; but so altered and emaciated 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



159 



was my appearance, that the poor fellow burst into tears 
at the first sight. I crawled on to the mat in the little 
room, to which I was confined for more than two months, 
and never perfectly recovered, until I came to the Eng- 
lish camp. At this period, when I was unable to take 
care of myself, or look after Mr. Judson, we must both 
have died, had it not been for the faithful and affectionate 
care of our Bengalee cook. A common Bengalee cook 
will do nothing but the simple business of cooking. But 
he seemed to forget his caste, and almost his own wants, 
in his efforts to serve us. He would provide, cook, and 
carry your brother's food, and then return and take care 
of me. I have frequently known him not to taste food 
till jiear night, in consequence of having to go so far for 
wood and water, and in order to have Mr. Judson's dinner 
ready at the usual hour. He never complained, never 
asked for his wages, and never for a moment hesitated 
to go anywhere, or to perform any act we required. I 
take great pleasure in speaking of the faithful conduct 
of this servant, who is still with us, and I trust has been 
well rewarded for his services. 

Our dear little Maria was the greatest sufferer at this 
time, my illness depriving her of her usual nourishment, 
and neither a nurse nor a drop of milk could be procured 
in the village. By making presents to the jailers, I ob- 
tained leave for Mr. Judson to come out of prison, and 
take the emaciated creature around the village, to beg a 
little nourishment from those mothers who had young 
children. Her cries in the night were heart-rending, 
when it was impossible to supply her wants. I now be- 
gan to think the very afflictions of Job had come upon 



160 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



me. When in health, I could bear the various trials and 
vicissitudes through which I was called to pass. But to 
be confined with sickness, and unable to assist those who 
were so dear to me, when in distress', was almost too much 
for me to bear ; and had it not been for the consolations 
of religion, and an assured conviction that every addi- 
tional trial was ordered by infinite love and mercy, I must 
have sunk under my accumulated sufferings. Sometimes 
our jailers seemed a little softened at our distress, and 
for several days together allowed Mr. Judson to come to 
the house, which was to me an unspeakable consolation. 
Then again, they would be as iron-hearted in their de- 
mands, as though we were free from sufferings, and in 
affluent circumstances. The annoyance, the extortions, 
and oppressions to which we were subject, during our 
six months' residence in Oung-pen-la, are beyond enume- 
ration or description. 

It was some time after our arrival at Oung-pen-la, that 
we heard of the execution of the Pakan Woon, in con- 
consequence of which our lives were still preserved. For 
we afterwards ascertained, that the white foreigners had 
been sent to Oung-pen-la, for the express purpose of 
sacrificing them ; and that he himself intended witness- 
ing the horrid scene. "We had frequently heard of his 
intended arrival at Oung-pen-la ; but we had no idea of 
his diabolical purposes. He had raised an army of fifty 
thousand men, (a tenth part of whose advance pay was 
found in his house,) and expected to march against the 
English army in a short time, when he was suspected of 
high treason, and instantly executed without the least 
examination. Perhaps no death in Ava ever produced 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 161 

such universal rejoicings, as that of the Pakan Woon. 
We never, to this day, hear his name mentioned, but 
with an epithet of reproach or hatred. Another bro- 
ther of the king was appointed to the command of the 
army now in readiness, but with no very sanguine expec- 
tations of success. Some weeks after the departure of 
these troops, two of the Woon-gyees were sent down for 
the purpose of negotiating. But not being successful, 
the queen's brother, the acting king of the country, was 
prevailed on to go. Great expectations were raised 
in consequence ; but his cowardice induced him to en- 
camp his detachment of the army at a great distance 
from the English, and even at a distance from the main 
body of the Burmese army, whose head-quarters were 
then at Maloun. Thus he effected nothing, though re- 
ports were continually reaching us, that peace was nearly 
concluded. 

The time at length arrived for our release from the 
dreary scenes of Oung-pen-la. A messenger from our 
friend, the governor of the north gate of the palace, in- 
formed us that an order had been given the evening 
before, in the palace, for Mr. Judson's release. On the 
same evening, an official order arrived, and with a joyful 
heart I set about preparing for our departure early the 
following morning. But an unexpected obstacle occurred, 
which made us fear that I should still be retained as a 
prisoner. The avaricious jailers, unwilling to lose their 
prey, insisted, that as my name was not included in the 
order, I should not go. In vain I urged that I was not 
sent there as a prisoner, and that they had no authority 
over me — they still determined I should not go, and for- 
11 



162 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



bade the villagers letting me a cart. Mr. Judson was 
then taken out of prison, and brought to the jailer's 
house, where, by promises and threatenings, he finally 
gained their consent, on condition that we would leave 
the remaining part of oar provisions we had recently 
received from Ava. It was noon before we were allowed 
to depart. When we reached Amarapora, Mr. Judson 
was obliged to follow the guidance of the jailer, who 
conducted him to the governor of the city. Having 
made all necessary inquiries, the governor appointed 
another guard, which conveyed Mr. Judson to the court- 
house in Ava, to which place he arrived some time in the 
night. I took my own course, procured a boat, and 
reached our house before dark. 

My first object the next morning, was to go in search 
of your brother, and I had the mortification to meet him 
again in prison, though not the death prison. I went 
immediately to my old friend, the governor of the city, 
who now was raised to the rank of a Woon-gyee. He 
informed me that Mr. Judson was to be sent to the Bur- 
mese camp, to act as translator and interpreter ; and 
that he was put in confinement for a short time only, till 
his affairs were settled. Early on the following morning, 
I went to this officer again, who told me that Mr. Judson 
had that moment received twenty tickals from govern- 
ment, with orders to go immediately on board a boat for 
Maloun, and that he had given him permission to stop a 
few moments at the house, it being on his way. I has- 
tened back to the house, where Mr. Judson soon arrived, 
but was allowed to remain only a short time, while I 
could prepare food and clothing for future use. He was 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



163 



crowded into a little boat, where he had not room to lie 
down, and where his exposure to the cold, damp nights 
threw him into a violent fever, which had nearly ended 
all his sufferings. He arrived at Maloun on the third 
day, where, ill as he was, he was obliged to enter imme- 
diately on the work of translating. He remained at 
Maloun six weeks, suffering as much as he had at any 
time in prison, excepting he was not in irons, nor exposed 
to the insults of those cruel jailers. 

For the first fortnight after his departure, my anxiety 
was less than it had been at any time previous, since the 
commencement of our difficulties. I knew the Burmese 
officers at the camp would feel the value of Mr. Judson's 
services too much to allow their using any measures 
threatening his life. I thought his situation, also, would 
be much more comfortable than it really was — hence my 
anxiety was less. But my health, which had never been 
restored since that violent attack at Oung-pen-la, now 
daily declined, till I was seized with the spotted fever, 
with all its attendant horrors. I knew the nature of the 
fever from its commencement, and from the shattered 
state of my constitution, together with the want of med- 
ical attendants, I concluded it must be fatal. The day 
I was taken with the fever, a Burmese nurse came and 
offered her services for Maria. This circumstance filled 
me with gratitude and confidence in God, for though I 
had so long and so constantly made efforts to obtain a 
person of this description, I had never been able ; when, 
at the very time I most needed one, and without any 
exertion, a voluntary offer was made. My fever raged 
violently, and without any intermission. I began to 



164 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 

think of settling my worldly affairs, and of committing my 
dear little Maria to the care of a Portuguese woman, 
when I lost my reason, and was insensible to all around 
me. At this dreadful period, Dr. Price was released 
from prison ; and hearing of my illness, obtained per- 
mission to come and see me. He has since told me that 
my situation was the most distressing he had ever wit- 
nessed, and that he did not then think I should survive many 
hours. My hair was shaved, my head and feet covered 
with blisters, and Dr. Price ordered the Bengalee ser- 
vant who took care of me, to endeavor to persuade me 
to take a little nourishment, which I had obstinately re- 
fused for several days. One of the first things I recollect 
was, seeing this faithful servant standing by me, trying 
to induce me to take a little wine and water. I was, in 
fact, so far gone, that the Burmese neighbors who had 
come in to see me expire, said, " She is dead ; and if the 
King of angels should come in, he could not recover 
her." 

The fever, I afterwards understood, had run seventeen 
days when the blisters were applied. I now began to 
recover slowly : but it was more than a month after this 
before I had strength to stand. While in this weak, de- 
bilitated state, the servant who had followed your bro- 
ther to the Burmese camp, came in ? and informed me 
that his master had arrived, and was conducted to the 
court-house in town. I sent off a Burman to watch the 
movements of government, and to ascertain, if possible, 
m what way Mr. Judson was to be disposed of. He soon 
returned with the sad intelligence, that he saw Mr. Jud- 
son go out of the palace yard, accompanied by two or 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



165 



three Burmans, who conducted him to one of the prisons, 
and that it was reported in town, that he was to be sent 
back to the Oung-pen-la prison. I was too weak to bear 
ill tidings of any kind ; but a shock so dreadful as this, 
almost annihilated me. For some time, I could hardlv 
breathe ; but at last gained sufficient composure to des- 
patch Moung Ingto our friend, the governor of the north 
gate, and begged him to make one more effort for the 
release of Mr. Judson, and prevent his being sent back 
to the country prison, where I knew he must suffer much, 
as 1 could not follow. Moung Ing then went in search 
of Mr. Judson ; and it was nearly dark when he found 
him in the interior of an obscure prison. I had sent 
food early in the afternoon, but being unable to find him, 
the bearer had returned with it, which added another 
pang to my distresses, as I feared he was already sent to 
Oung-pen-la. 

If I ever felt the value and efficacy of prayer, I did 
at this time. I could not rise from my couch ; I could 
make no efforts to secure my Tvusband ; I could only plead 
with that great and powerful Being who has said, " Call 
upon me in the day of trouble, and I will hear, and thou 
shalt glorify me;" and who made me at this time feel 
so powerfully this promise, that I became quite com- 
posed, feeling assured that my prayers would be an- 
swered. 

When Mr. Judson was sent from Maloun to Ava, it 
was within five minutes' notice, and without his know- 
ledge of the cause. On his way up the river, he acci- 
dentally saw the communication made to government 
respecting him, which was simply this : " We haro no 



166 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



further use for Yoodathan, we therefore return him to 
the golden city." On arriving at the court-house, there 
happened to be no one present who was acquainted with 
Mr. J. The presiding officer inquired from what place 
he had been sent to Maloun. He was answered from 
Oung-pen-la. Let him then, said the officer, be returned 
thither — when he was delivered to a guard and con- 
ducted to the place above mentioned, there to remain 
until he could be conveyed to Oung-pen-la. In the" 
meantime the governor of the north gate presented a 
petition to the high court of the empire, offered himself 
as Mr. Judson's security, obtained his release, and took 
him to his house, where he treated him with considerable 
kindness, and to which I was removed as soon as return- 
ing health would allow. 

The advance of the English army towards the capital 
at this time threw the whole town into the greatest state 
of alarm, and convinced the government that some speedy 
measures must be taken to save the golden city. They 
had hitherto rejected all the overtures of Sir Archibald 
Campbell, imagining, until this late period, that they 
could in some way or other drive the English from the 
country. Mr. Judson and Dr. Price were daily called 
to the palace and consulted; in fact nothing was done 
without their approbation. Two English officers, also, 
who had lately been brought to Ava as prisoners, were 
continually consulted, and their good offices requested in 
endeavoring to persuade the British general to make 
peace on easier terms. It was finally concluded that Mr. 
Judson and one of the officers above mentioned, should be 
sent immediately to the English camp, in order to nego 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTIJSTE JUDSON. 



167 



tiate. The danger attached to a situation so responsible, 
under a government so fickle as the Burmese, induced 
your brother to use every means to prevent his being 
sent. Dr. Price was not only willing, but desirous of 
going ; this circumstance Mr. Judson represented to the 
members of government, and begged he might not be 
compelled to go, as Dr. Price could transact the business 
equally as well as himself. After some hesitation and 
deliberation, Dr. Price was appointed to accompany Dr. 
Sandford, one of the English officers, on condition that 
Mr. Judson would stand security for his return ; while 
the other English officer, then in irons, should be se- 
curity for Dr. Sandford. The king gave them a hundred 
tickals each, to bear their expenses, (twenty-five of which 
Dr. Sandford generously sent to Mr. Gouger, still a prison- 
er at Oung-pen-la, ) boats, men, and a Burmese officer, to 
accompany them, though he ventured no farther than the 
Burman camp. With the most anxious solicitude the 
court waited the arrival of the messengers, but did not 
in the least relax in their exertions to fortify the city. 
Men and beasts were at w T ork night and day, making 
new stockades and strengthening old ones, and what- 
ever buildings were in their way were immediately torn 
down. Our house with all that surrounded it, was 
levelled to the ground, and our beautiful little compound 
turned into a road and a place for the erection of cannon. 
All articles of value were conveyed out of town and 
safely deposited in some other place. 

At length the boat, in which the ambassadors had 
been sent, was seen approaching a day earlier than 
was expected. As it advanced towards the city, the 



.168 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



banks were lined by thousands, anxiously inquiring their 
success. But ho answer was given — the government 
must first hear the news. The palace gates were crowded, 
the oflBcers at the Loot-dau were seated, when Dr. Price 
made the following communication : " The general and 
commissioners will make no alteration in their terms, 
except the hundred lacks (a lack is a hundred thousand) 
of rupees, may be paid at four different times. The first 
twenty-five lacks to be paid within twelve days, or the 
army will continue their march. " In addition to this, the 
prisoners w r ere to be given up immediately. The general 
had commissioned Dr. Price to demand Mr. Judson and 
myself and little Maria. This was communicated to the 
king, who replied, " They are not English, they are 
my people, and shall not go. " At this time I had no 
idea that we should ever be released from Ava. The 
government had learned the value of your nrother's 
services, having employed him the last three months ; and 
we both concluded they would never consent to our de- 
parture. The foreigners were again called to a consul- 
tation, to see what could be done. Dr. Price and Mr. 
Judson told them plainly that the English would never 
make peace on any other terms than those offered, and 
that it was in vain to go down again without the money. 
It was then proposed that a third part of the first sum 
demanded should be sent down immediately. Mr. Jud- 
son objected, and still said it would be useless. Some 
of the members of government then intimated that it 
was probable the teachers were on the side of the Eng- 
lish, and did not try to make them take a smaller sum ; 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



169 



and also threatened if they did not make the English 
comply, they and their families should suffer. 

In this interval, the fears of the government were 
considerably allayed by the offers of a general, by name 
Layar-thoo-yah, who desired to make one more attempt 
to conquer the English, and disperse them. He assured 
the king and government, that he could so fortify the 
ancient city of Pagan, as to make it impregnable ; and 
that he would there defeat and destroy the English. His 
offers were heard, he marched to Pagan, with a very con- 
siderable force, and made strong the fortifications. But 
the English took the city with perfect ease, and dispersed 
the Burmese army ; while the general fled to Ava, and had 
the presumption to appear in the presence of the king, and 
demand new troops. The king being enraged that he had 
ever listened to him for a moment, in consequence of which 
the negotiation had been delayed, the English General 
provoked, and the troops daily advancing, that he or- 
dered the general to be immediately executed ! The 
poor fellow w T as soon hurled from the palace, and beat 
all the way to the court-house — when he was stripped of 
his rich apparel, bound with cords, and made to kneel 
and bow towards the palace. He was then delivered 
into the hands of the executioners, who, by their cruel 
treatment, put an end to his existence before they 
reached the place of execution. 

The king caused it to be reported that this general 
was executed in consequence of disobeying his commands, 
"JSTot to fight the English:' 

Dr. Price was sent off the same night, with part of 
the prisoners, and with instructions to persuade the 



170 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



general to take six lacks instead of twenty-five. He 
returned in two or three days with the appalling intelli- 
gence that the English General was very angry, refused 
to have any communication with him, and was now within 
a few days' march of the capital. The queen was 
greatly alarmed, and said the money should be raised 
immediately if the English would only stop their march. 
The whole palace was in motion, gold and silver vessels 
were melted up, the king and queen superintended the 
weighing of a part of it, and were determined if possible 
to save their city. The silver was ready in the boats 
by the next evening ; but they had so little confidence 
in the English that, after all their alarm, they concluded 
to send down six lacks only, with the assurance that if 
the English would stop where they then were, the re- 
mainder should be forthcoming immediately. 

The government now did not even ask Mr. Judson 
the question whether he would go or not ; but some of 
the officers took him by the arm, as he was walking in 
the street, and told him he must go immediately on board 
the boat, to accompany two Burmese officers, a Woon- 
gyee and Woondouk, who were going down to make 
peace. Most of the English prisoners were sent at the 
same time. The general and commissioners would not 
receive the six lacks, neither would they stop their 
march ; but promised, if the sum complete reached them 
before they should arrive at Ava, they would make peace. 
The general also commissioned Mr. Judson to collect the 
remaining foreigners, of whatever country, and ask the 
question before the Burmese government, whether they 
wished to go or stay. Those who expressed a wish to go 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



171 



should be delivered up immediately or peace would not 
he made. 

Mr. Judson reached Ava at midnight; had all the for- 
eigners called the next morning, and the question asked. 
Some of the members of government said to him, " You 
will not leave us — you shall become a great man if you 
will remain." He then secured himself from the odium 
of saying that he washed to leave the service of his 
majesty, by recurring to the order of Sir Archibald, that 
whoever wished to leave Ava should be given up, and 
that I had expressed a wish to go, so that he of course 
must follow. The remaining part of the twenty-five 
lacks was soon collected ; the prisoners at Oung-pen-la 
were all released, and either sent to their houses or 
down the river to the English ; and in two days from 
the time of Mr. Judson's return, we took an affectionate 
leave of the good natured officer who had so long en- 
tertained us at his house, and who now accompanied us 
to the water side, and we then left forever the banks of 
Ava. 

It was on a cool, moonlight evening, in the month of 
March, that, with hearts filled with gratitude to God, 
and overflowing with joy at our prospects, we passed 
down the Irrawaddy, surrounded by six or eight golden 
boats, and accompanied by all we had on earth. The 
thought that we had still to pass the Burman camp, 
would sometimes occur to damp our joy, for we feared 
that some obstacle might there arise to retard our pro- 
gress. Nor were we mistaken in our conjectures. We 
reached the camp about midnight, where we were de- 
tained two hours ; the Woongyee, and high officers, in- 



172 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JIjDSON. 



sisting that we should wait at the camp while Dr. Price, 
(who lid not return to Ava with your brother, but re- 
mained at the camp,) should go on with the money, and 
first ascertain whether peace would be made. The Bur- 
mese government still entertained the idea that as soon 
as the English had received the money and prisoners, 
they would continue their march and yet destroy the 
capital. We knew not but that some circumstance might 
occur to break off the negotiations; Mr. Judson there- 
fore strenuously insisted that he w T ould not remain, but 
go on immediately. The officers were finally prevailed 
on to consent, hoping much from Mr. Judson's assistance 
in making peace. 

We now, for the first time, for more than a year and 
a half, felt that we were free, and no longer subject to 
the oppressive yoke of the Burmese. And with what 
sensations of delight, on the next morning, did I behold 
the masts of the steam-boat, the sure presage of being 
within the bounds of civilized life. As soon as our boat 
reached the shore, Brigadier A. and another officer came 
on board, congratulated us on our arrival, and invited us 
on board the steam-boat, where I passed the remainder 
of the day, while your brother went on to meet the 
general, who, with a detachment of the army, had en- 
camped at Yandabo, a few miles further down the river. 
Mr. Judson returned in the evening with an invitation 
from Sir Archibald, to come immediately to his quarters, 
where I was the next morning introduced, and received 
with the greatest kindness by the general, who had a 
tent pitched for us near his own — took us to his own 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 173 



table, and treated us with the kindness of a father, rather 
than as strangers of another country. 

We feel that our obligations to General Campbell can 
never be canceled. Our final release from Ava, and 
our recovering all the property that had there been taken 
was owing entirely to his efforts. This subsequent hos- 
pitality, and kind attention to the accommodations for 
our passage to Rangoon, have left an indelible impres- 
sion on our minds, which can never be forgotten. We 
daily received the congratulation of the British officers, 
whose conduct towards us formed a striking contrast to 
that of the Burmese. I presume to say that no persons 
on earth were ever happier than we were during the fort- 
night we passed at the English camp. For several days 
this single idea wholly occupied my mind, that we were 
out of the power of the Burmese government, and once 
more under the protection of the English. Our feelings 
continually dictated expressions like these : — What shall 
we render to the Lord for all his benefits toward us I 

The treaty of peace was soon concluded, signed by 
both parties, and a termination of hostilities publicly de- 
clared. We left Yandabo, after a fortnight's residence, 
and safely reached the mission-house in Rangoon, after 
an absence of two years and three months. 

A review of our trip to, and adventures in Ava, often 
excites the inquiry, Why were we permitted to go ? 
What good has been effected? Why did I not listen to 
the advice of friends in Bengal, and remain there till 
the war was concluded ? But all that we can say is, It 
is not in man that ivalketh to direct his steps. So far as 
my going round to Rangoon, at the time I did, was in- 



174 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



strumental in bringing those heavy afflictions upon us, I 
can only state, that if I ever acted from a sense of duty 
in my life, it was at that time ; for my conscience would 
not allow me any peace when I thought of sending for 
your brother to come to Calcutta, in prospect of the ap- 
proaching war. Our society at home have lost no pro- 
perty in consequence of our difficulties ; but two years 
of precious time have been lost to the mission, unless 
some future advantage may be gained, in consequence 
of the severe discipline to which we ourselves have been 
subject. We are sometimes induced to think that the 
lesson we found so very hard to learn will have a benefi- 
cial effect through our lives ; and that the mission may, 
in the end, be advanced rather than retarded. 

We should have had no hesitation about remaining in 
Ava if no part of the Burmese empire had been ceded 
to the British. But, as it was, we felt it would be an 
unnecessary exposure, besides the missionary field being 
much more limited, in consequence of intoleration. We 
now consider our future missionary prospects as bright, 
indeed ; and our only anxiety is to be once more in that 
situation where our time will be exclusively devoted to 
the instruction of the heathen. 

The following tribute to Mrs. Judson, written by one 
of Mr. Judson's companions in captivity, an Englishman, 
it is due to her memory to introduce here : 

"Mrs. Judson was the author of those eloquent and 
forcible appeals to the government, which prepared them 
by degrees for submission to terms of peace, never ex- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



175 



pected by any, who knew the hauteur and inflexible pride 
of the Burman court. 

" And while on this subject, the overflowings of grate- 
ful feelings, on behalf of myself and fellow prisoners, 
compel me to add a tribute of public thanks to that amiable 
and humane female, who, though living at a distance of 
two miles from our prison, without any means of con- 
veyance, and very feeble in health, forgot her own com- 
fort and infirmity, and almost every day visited us, sought 
out and administered to our wants, and contributed in 
every way to alleviate our misery. 

" While we were all left by the government destitute 
of food, she, with unwearied perseverance, by some means 
or other, obtained for us a constant supply. 

" When the tattered state of our clothes evinced the 
extremity of our distress, she was ever ready to replen- 
ish our scanty wardrobe. 

" When the unfeeling avarice of our keepers confined 
us inside, or made our feet fast in the stocks, she, like a 
ministering angel, never ceased her applications to the 
government, until she was authorized to communicate to 
us the grateful news of our enlargement, or of a respite 
from our galling oppressions. 

" Besides all this, it was unquestionably owing in a 
chief degree, to the repeated eloquence, and forcible ap- 
peals of Mrs. Judson, that the untutored Burman was 
finally made willing to secure the welfare and happiness 
of his country, by a sincere peace. " 



176 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



CHAPTER X. 

DEATH OF MRS. JUDSON AND HER DAUGHTER. 

Although the terrible sufferings through which the 
Missionaries had passed were sufficient to appal the 
stoutest heart, their love for the Burmans and their de- 
votion to the missionary cause continued unabated. They 
prepared, full of renewed hope, for a removal to a new field 
of labour, Amherst. Mr. Judson writes to the corres- 
ponding secretary. 

Rangoon, July 31s£, 1826. 

Rev. and dear Sir: 

At the date of my last letter, I was waiting for an 
opportunity of removing to Amherst. Since then, the 
commissioner, Mr. Crawford, who is appointed to nego- 
tiate a secondary treaty with the court of Ava, renewed 
his proposal for me to accompany the embassy, and 
pledged himself, in case of my complying, to use his in- 
terest to procure the insertion of an article in the treaty, 
favorable to religious toleration — an object which I have 
had at heart for so many years, and which, though now 
on account of the opening in the south provinces, not 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 1^7 

so necessary as formerly, yet greatly favourable to the 
gradual introduction of religion, into all parts of the 
country, from the station which we propose occupying. 
With these views, I thought it my duty to accept the 
offer. Desirous, however, of making a commencement 
in the new place, as early as possible, and unwilling to 
disappoint the native converts, who had left this, in the full 
expectation of our immediately following them, I accom- 
panied Mrs. Judson and family thither, in the end of 
last month, and after seeing them comfortably settled, 
in a temporary house belonging to Captain Fenwick, 
Civil Superintendent of the place, which he kindly va- 
cated for Mrs. Judson's accommodation, I returned to 
Rangoon the 9th inst. The embassy will leave this for 
Ava, on the receipt of final orders from Bengal, which 
are daily expected. 

During Mr. Judson's absence upon this errand, Mrs. 
Judson, the noble heroine, whose intrepid and loving 
care had been his solace through such severe afflict- 
ions, was taken ill with the fatal disorder which termi- 
nated her life, October, 24th, 1826. In a strange land, 
with the husband for whose sake she had faced so many 
perils, away from relatives and home, she died, leaving a 
deathless fame, and an example to her countrywomen 
that can never fade or be forgotten. 

Mr. Judson's letter to Mrs. Judson's mother, contains 
the fullest account of her illness and death. I quote it 
entire. 
12 



178 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



TO MRS. HASSELTINE OF BRADFORD, MASS. 

Ava, December 7th, 1826, 
Dear Mother Hasseltine: — 

This letter, though intended for the whole family, 1 
address particularly to you; for it is a mother's heait 
that will be most deeply interested in its melancholy de- 
tails. I propose to give you, at different times, some 
account of my great irreparable loss, of which you will 
have heard before receiving this letter. 

I left your daughter, my beloved wife, at Amherst, 
the 5th of July last, in good health, comfortably situ- 
ated, happy in being out of the reach of our savage 
oppressors, and animated in prospect of a field of mis- 
sionary labor opening under the auspices of British pro- 
tection. It affords me some comfort that she not only 
consented to my leaving her, for the purpose of joining 
the present embassy to Ava, but uniformly gave her 
advice in favor of the measure, whenever I hesitated con- 
cerning my duty. Accordingly I left her. On the 5th 
of July, I saw her for the last time. Our parting was 
much less painful than many others had been. We had 
been preserved through so many trials and vicissitudes, 
that a separation of three or four months, attended with 
no hazards to either party, seemed a light thing. We 
parted, therefore, with cheerful hearts, confident of a 
speedy reunion, and indulging fond anticipations of future 
years of domestic happiness. After my return to Ran- 
goon, and subsequent arrival at Ava, I received several 
letters from her, written in her usual style, and exhibit- 
ing no subject of regret or apprehension, except the de- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 179 

clining health of our little daughter, Maria. Her last 
was dated the 14th of September. She says, " I have 
this day moved into the new house, and, for the first 
time since we were broken up at Ava, feel myself at 
home. The house is large and convenient, and if you 
were here I should feel quite happy. The native popu- 
lation is increasing very fast, and things wear rather a 
favorable aspect. Moung Ing's school has commenced 
with ten scholars, and more are expected. Poor little 
Maria is still feeble. I sometimes hope she is getting 
better ; then again she declines to her former weakness. 
When I ask her where papa is, she always starts up, and 
points towards the sea. The servants behave very well, 
and I have no trouble about anything, excepting you and 
Maria. Pray take care of yourself, particularly as it 
regards the intermittent fever at Ava. May God pre- 
serve and bless you, and restore you in safety to your 
new and old home, is the prayer of your affectionate 
Ann." 

On the 3d of October, Captain F., civil superinten- 
dent of Amherst, writes, "Mrs. Judson is extremely 
well. ,, Why she did not write herself, by the same op- 
portunity, I know not. On the 18th, the same gentle- 
man writes, " I can hardly think it right to tell you that 
Mrs. Judson has had an attack of fever, as before this 
reaches you, she will, I sincerely trust, be quite well, as 
it has not been so severe as to reduce her. This was 
occasioned by too close attendance on the child. How- 
ever, her cares have been rewarded in a most extraordi- 
nary manner, as the poor babe at one time was so 
reduced that no rational hope could be entertained of its 



180 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



recovery ; but at present, a most favorable change has 
taken place, and she has improved wonderfully. Mrs. 
Judson had no fever last night, so that the intermission 
is now complete." The tenor of this letter was such as 
to make my mind quite easy, both as it regarded the 
mother and the child. My next communication was a 
letter with a black seal, handed me by a person, saying 
he was sorry to have to inform me of the death of the 
child. I know not whether this was a mistake on his 
part, or kindly intended to prepare my mind for the real 
intelligence. I went into my room, and opened the let- 
ter with feelings of gratitude and joy, that at any rate 
the mother was spared. It was from Mr. B., assistant 
superintendent of Amherst, dated the 26th of October, 
and began thus : — 

" My dear Sir : — To one who has suffered so much, 
and with such exemplary fortitude, there needs but little 
preface to tell a tale of distress. It were cruel indeed, 
to torture you with doubt and suspense. To sum up the 
unhappy tidings in a few words, Mrs. Judson is no 
more. 1 9 

At intervals, I got through with the dreadful letter, 
and proceed to give you the substance as indelibly engraven 
on my heart : — 

" Early in the month, she was attacked with a most 
violent fever. From the first, she felt a strong present- 
iment that she should not recover, and on the 24th, about 
eight in the evening, she expired. Dr. R. was quite 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 181 



assiduous in his attentions, both as friend and physician. 
Captain F., procured her the services of a European 
woman from the 45th regiment ; and be assured, all was 
done that could be done to comfort her in her sufferings, 
and to smooth the passage to the grave. We all deeply 
feel the loss of this excellent lady, whose shortness of 
residence among us was yet sufficiently long to impress 
us with a deep sense of her worth and virtues. It was 
not until about the 20th that Dr. R. began seriously to 
suspect danger. Before that period, the fever had 
abated at intervals ; but its last approach baffled all med- 
ical skill. On the morning of the 23d, Mrs. Judson 
spoke for the last time. The disease had then completed 
its conquest, and from that time up to the moment of 
dissolution, she lay nearly motionless, and apparently 
quite insensible. Yesterday morning I assisted in the 
last melancholy office of putting her mortal remains in 
the coffin, and in the evening her funeral was attended 
by all the European officers now resident here. We have 
buried her near the spot where she first landed, and I 
have put up a small, rude fence around the grave, to pro- 
tect it from incautious intrusions. Your little girl, Maria, 
is much better. Mrs. W. has taken charge of her, and 
I hope she will continue to thrive under her care." 

Two days later, Captain Fenwick writes thus to a 
friend in Rangoon : — 

" I trust that you will be able to find means to inform 
our friend of the dreadful loss he has suffered. Mrs. 
Judson had slight attacks of fever from the 8th or 9th 



182 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



instant, but we had no reason to apprehend the fatal 
result. I saw her on the 18th, and at that time, she was 
free from fever, scarcely, if at all, reduced. I was 
obliged to go up the country on a sudden business, and 
did not hear of her danger until my return on the 24th, 
on which day she breathed her last, at 8 P. M. I shall 
not attempt to give you an account of the gloom which 
the death of this most amiable woman has thrown over 
our small society. You, who were so well acquainted 
with her, must feel her loss more deeply ; but we had 
just known her long enough to value her acquaintance 
as a blessing in this remote corner. I dread the effect 
it will have on poor Judson. I am sure that you will 
take every care that this mournful intelligence may be 
opened to him as carefully as possible." 

The only other communication on this subject, that 
has reached me, is the following line from Sir Archibald 
Campbell, to the envoy: "Poor Judson will be dread- 
fully distressed at the loss of his good and amiable wife. 
She died the other day at Amherst, of remittent fever, 
eighteen days ill." 

You perceive that I have no account whatever of the state 
of her mind, in view of death and eternity, or of her 
wishes concerning her darling babe, whom she loved 
most intensely. I hope to glean some information on 
these points from the physician who attended her, and 
the native converts who must have been occasionally 
present. 

I will not trouble you, my dear mother, with an account 
of my own private feelings — the bitter, heart-rending 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 183 



anguish, which for some days would admit of no mitiga- 
tion, and the comfort which the gospel subsequently 
afforded — the gospel of Jesus Christ, which brings life 
and immortality to light. Blessed assurance — and let 
us apply it afresh to our hearts — that, while I am wri- 
ting, and you perusing these lines, her spirit is resting 
and rejoicing in the heavenly paradise, — 

" Where glories shine, and pleasures roll 
That charm, delight, transport the soul ; 
And every panting wish shall be 
Possessed of boundless bliss in thee." 

And there, my dear mother, we also shall soon be, 
uniting and participating in the felicities of heaven with 
her for whom we now mourn. " Amen. Even so, come, 
Lord Jesus." 

Amherst, February 4, 1827. 
Amid the desolation that death has made, I take up 
my pen once more to address the mother of my beloved 
Ann. I am sitting in the house she built, in the room 
where she breathed her last, and at a window, from 
which I see the tree that stands at the head of her 
grave, and the top of the "small rude fence' ' which 
they have put up " to protect it from incautious intru- 
sion." 

Mr. and Mrs. Wade are living in the house, having 
arrived here about a month after Ann's death ; and Mrs. 
Wade has taken charge of my poor motherless Maria. 
I was unable to get any accounts of the child at Ran- 
goon ; and it was only on my arriving here, the 24tn 



184 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



ultimo, that I learned that she was still alive. Mr, 
Wade met me at the landing place, and as I passed on 
to the house, one and another of the native Christians 
came out, and when they saw me they began to weep. 
At length we reached the house ; and I almost expected 
to see my love coming out to meet me, as usual. But 
no ; I saw only, in the arms of Mrs. Wade, a poor little 
puny child, who could not recognize her weeping father, 
and from whose infant mind had long been erased all 
recollection of the mother who loved her so much. 

She turned away from me in alarm, and I, obliged to 
seek comfort elsewhere, found my way to the grave. 
But who ever obtained comfort there ? Thence I went 
to the house, in which I left her, and looked at the spot 
where we last knelt in prayer, and where we exchanged 
the parting kiss. 

The doctor who attended her has removed to another 
station, and the only information I can obtain is such as 
the native Christians are able to communicate. 

It seems that her head was much affected during her 
last days, and she said but little. She sometimes com- 
plained thus : " The teacher is long in coming ; and the 
new missionaries are long in coming ; I must die alone, 
and leave my little one ; but, as it is the will of God, I 
acquiesce in his will. I am not afraid of death, but I 
am afraid I shall not be able to bear these pains. Tell 
the teacher that the disease was most violent, and I could 
not write ; tell him how I suffered and died ; tell him all 
that you see ; and take care of the house and things 
until he returns/' When she was unable to notice any- 
thing else, she would still call the child to her, and 



\ 

LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 185 

charge the nurse to be kind to it, and indulge it in every- 
thing until its father shall return. The last day or two, 
she lay almost senseless and motionless, on one side, her 
head reclining on her arm, her eyes closed ; and at eight 
in the evening, with one exclamation of distress, in the 
Burmese language, she ceased to breathe. 

Feb. 7. I have been on a visit to the physician who 
attended her in her illness. He has the character of a 
kind, attentive, and skillful practitioner; and his com- 
munications to me have been rather consoling. I am 
now convinced that everything possible was done, and 
that, had I been present myself, I could not have essen- 
tially contributed to avert the fatal termination of the 
disease. The doctor was with her twice a day, and fre- 
quently spent the greater part of the night by her side. 
He says that, from the first attack of the fever she was 
persuaded she should not recover; but that her mind 
was uniformly tranquil and happy in the prospect of 
death. She only expressed occasional regret at leaving 
her child, and the native Christian schools, before her 
husband, or another missionary family could arrive. 
The last two days she was free from pain. On her at- 
tention being roused by reiterated questions, she replied, 
"I feel quite well, only very weak." These were her 
last words. 

The doctor is decidedly of opinion that the fatal ter- 
mination of the fever is not to be ascribed to the locali- 
ties of the new settlement, but chiefly to the weakness 
of her constitution, occasioned by the severe privations 
and long-protracted sufferings she endured at Ava. Oh, 
with what meekness, and patience, and magnanimity, 



186 LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



and Christian fortitude, she bore those sufferings ! And 
can I wish they had been less ? Can I sacrilegiously 
wish to rob her crown of a single gem ? Much she saw and 
Buffered of the evil of this evil world, and eminently was 
she qualified to relish and enjoy the pure and holy rest 
into which she has entered. True, she has been taken 
from a sphere in which she was singularly qualified, by 
her natural disposition, her winning manners, her devoted 
zeal, and her perfect acquaintance with the language, to 
be extensively serviceable to the cause of Christ ; true, 
she has been torn from her husband's bleeding heart, and 
from her darling babe ; but infinite wisdom and love have 
presided, as ever, in this most afflicting dispensation. 
Faith decides that it is all right, and the decision of faith 
eternity will soon confirm. 

I have only time to add — for I am writing in great 
naste, with very short notice of the present opportunity 
of sending to Bengal — that poor little Maria, though 
very feeble, is, I hope, recovering from her long illness. 
She began, indeed, to recover, while under the care of 
the lady who kindly took charge of her, at her mother's 
death ; but when, after Mr. Wade's arrival, she was 
brought back to this house, she seemed to think that she 
had returned to her former home, and had found in Mrs. 
Wade her own mother. And certainly the most tender, 
affectionate care is not wanting to confirm her in this 
idea. 

The little Maria soon followed her mother to her 
eternal home. Mr Judson's letter to his mother-in-law- 
says : 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 187 



TO MRS. HASSELTINE. 

Amherst, April 26, 1827. 

Dear Mother Hasseltine : My little Maria lies by 
the side of her fond mother. The complaint to which 
she was subject several months proved incurable. She 
had the best medical advice ; and the kind care of Mrs. 
Wade could not have been, in any respect, exceeded by 
that of her own mother. But all our efforts, and 
prayers, and tears could not propitiate the cruel disease ; 
the work of death went forward, and after the usual 
process, excruciating to a parent's heart, she ceased to 
breathe on the 24th instant, at 3 o'clock, P. M., aged 
two yeavs and three months. We then closed her faded 
eyes, and bound up her discolored lips, where the dark 
touch of death first appeared, and folded her little hands 
on her cold breast. The next morning we made her last 
bed in the small enclosure that surrounds her mother's 
lonely grave. Together they rest in hope, under the 
hope tree, (hopid,) which stands at the head of the 
graves ; and together, I trust, their spirits are rejoicing 
after a short separation of precisely six months. 

And I am left alone in the wide world. My own 
dear family I have buried ; one in Rangoon, and two in 
Amherst. What remains for me but to hold myself in 
readiness to follow the dear departed to that blessed 
world, 

" Where my best friends, my kindred, dwell, 
Where God, my Saviour reigns." 

I remain, my dear mother, yours, 

A. Judson. 



188 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



Before closing the life of this distinguished woman, I 
cannot forbear giving a quotation from Dr. Wayland's 
Memoirs of Dr. Judson, as showing the impression made 
by this truly lovely woman upon a British officer : 

" A British officer, Major Calder Campbell, describing 
4 an adventure in Ava,' in the year 1826, gives a beau- 
tiful and affecting description of Mrs. Judson. Major 
Campbell, then lieutenant, when descending the Irra- 
waddy river in a canoe manned by Burmans, was at- 
tacked in the night, while asleep, by his faithless boat- 
men, and severely wounded and robbed. When waiting 
on the beach with much anxiety and distress for the 
passage of some friendly bark, a row boat was seen ap- 
proaching. 

" Signals of distress were made, and a skiff sent to his 
assistance. The following is the language of the writer: 

" 6 We were taken on board. My eyes first rested on 
the thin, attenuated form of a lady — a white lady ! the 
first white woman I had seen for more than a year ! She 
was standing on the little deck of the row boat, leaning 
on the arm of a sickly-looking gentleman with an intel- 
lectual cast of countenance, in whom I at once recog- 
nized the husband or the brother. 

"'His dress and bearing pointed him out as a mis- 
sionary. I have said that I had not beheld a white fe- 
male for many months; and now the soothing accents of 
female words fell upon my ears like a household hymn 
of my youth. 

" ' My wound was tenderly dressed, my head bound up, 
and I was laid upon a sofa bed. With what a thankful 
heart did I breathe forth a blessing on these kind Sa- 



LIFE OF ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 189 



maritans ! With what delight did I drink in the mild, 
gentle sounds of that sweet woman's voice, as she pressed 
me to recruit my strength with some of that beverage 
" which cheers, but not inebriates !" She was seated in 
a large sort of swinging chair, of American construe* 
tion, in which her slight, emaciated, but graceful form 
appeared almost ethereal. Yet, with much of heaven, 
there were still the breathings of earthly feeling about 
her ; for at her feet rested a babe, a little wan baby, on 
which her eyes often turned with all a mother's love ; 
and gazing frequently upon her delicate features, with a 
fond, yet fearful, glance, was that meek missionary, her 
husband. Her face was pale, very pale, with that ex- 
pression of deep and serious thought which speaks of 
the strong and vigorous mind within the frail and perish- 
ing body ; her brown hair was braided over a placid and 
holy brow ; but her hands — those small, lily hands — 
were quite beautiful ; beautiful they were, and very wan ; 
for ah ! they told of disease — of death — death in all its 
transparent grace — when the sickly blood shines through 
the clear skin, even as the bright poison lights up the 
Venetian glass which it is about to shatter. That lady 
was Mrs. Judson, whose long captivity and severe hard- 
ships amongst the Burmese have since been detailed in 
her published journals. 

"'I remained two days with them; two delightful days 
they were to me. Mrs. Judson's powers of conversation 
were of the first order, and the many affecting anecdotes 
that she gave us of their long and cruel bondage, their 
struggles in the cause of religion, and their adventures 
during a long residence at the court of Ava, gained a 



190 LIFE OE ANN HASSELTINE JUDSON. 



heightened interest from the beautiful, energetic sim- 
plicity of her language, as well as from the certainty I 
felt that so fragile a flower as she in very truth was, had 
but a brief season to linger on earth. 

" ' Why is it that we grieve to think of the approaching 
death of the young, the virtuous, the ready ? Alas ! it 
is the selfishness of human nature that would keep to it- 
self the purest and sweetest gifts of Heaven, to encoun- 
ter the blasts and the blights of a world where we see 
them, rather than that they should be transplanted to a 
happier region, where we see them not. 

" 6 When I left the kind Judsons, I did so with regret. 
When I looked my last on her mild, worn countenance, 
as she issued some instructions to my new set of boat- 
men, I felt my eyes fill with prophetic tears. They 
were not perceived. We parted, and we never met 
again ; nor is it likely that the wounded subaltern was 
ever again thought of by those who had succored him. 
Mrs. Judson and her child died soon after the cessatioD 
of hostilities.' " 



LIFE OF 



SARAH B. JUDSON, 

SECOND WIFE OF 

REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D J). 



CHAPTER I. 

BIRTH, PARENTAGE, AND EARLY LIFE. 

Sarah B. Judson, n£e Hall, was born at Alstead, 
New Hampshire, on the 4th of November, 1803. She 
was the daughter of Ralph and Abia Hall, and the eldest 
of thirteen children. The discipline in habits of self- 
denial which was so invaluable to her in after years, com- 
menced with early childhood. Her parents were poor, 
and upon the eldest daughter fell the task of assisting 
her care-worn mother in all her domestic duties. Evin- 
cing at an early age an intellect capable of the highest 
cultivation, she was forced, by the iron hand of poverty, 
to attain knowledge through her own habits of self-cul- 
ture, aided by but little instruction. At four years of 
age, she could read, and that knowledge once acquired, 
her own love for study, and active mind, led her on, 

step by step, in the path of knowledge. Her ready, 

191 

! 



192 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



cheerful willingness to assist in every domestic care, as 
soon as her tiny hands could work, made her too valuable 
an assistant at home, to be easily relinquished, and, find- 
ing her time thus occupied, and feeling how selfish it 
would be to desert her post by her mother's side, even to 
gain the knowledge for which she panted, she stayed from 
school, winter after winter, studying in every interval of 
toil, and by habits of perseverance and industry, gaining 
information as rapidly as her companions who attended 
school. 

When very young, Sarah gave strong evidences of a 
religious heart, far beyond her years. Her love for holy 
things was not separate from every day life, a feeling to 
be indulged in on Sunday, and forgotten through the 
week. Every thought, every action, had for its main 
spring, the desire of pleasing God, and drawing towards 
his throne, all within the circle of her influence. When 
only twelve years old, she writes in her journal : 

" To-morrow will be the day which is called Thanks- 
giving ; but I have some fear that it is only in the name. 
* * * * This year, I will try to be truly thankful 
and not forget the good God who so kindly watches over 
my youthful days." 

Another love of her early years was for poetry, and 
the two ruling passions flow beautifully into one. Her 
verses, written at an early age, are mostly upon spared 
subjects. I quote her versification of David's Lar Hit 
over Saul and Jonathan, one of her earliest efforts :- 

The beauty of Israel for ever is fled, 

And low are the noble and strong ; 
Ye children of music encircle the dead, 

And chant the funereal song. 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



193 



Oh, speak not in Grath of the mighty laid low ! 

Be ye mute in proud Askelon's street ! 
Their daughters, in triumph at Israel's woe, 

With scoffs the sad tidings would greet. 

Ye mountains of Grilboa, never may dew 

At eventide visit your flowers ; 
May the fruits which the fields of your offerings strew. 

Never welcome the soft summer showers. 

While there, in his proud, princely beauty he stood, 
Was the bow of the warrior unstrung ; 

And low in the shadows that darken thy wood, 
The shield of the mighty was Hung. 

Oh, stronger than young mountain iions were they I 
Like the eagles they never knew fear ; 

And proud as they walked in their kingly array 
Shone the light upon helmet and spear. 

For Saul, oh, ye daughters of Israel most fair ! 

Who clothed you in scarlet and gold 
Untwine every gem from your beautiful hair, 

And in sack-cloth your loveliness fold. 

And I — oh, my brother ! in sorrow for thee, 

My spirit is bending full low ! 
Thy smiles and thy voice have been pleasant to me, 

As the streams that in Lebanon flow. 

Thy love was a wonderful, beautiful thing, 
More than kindles in woman's fond breast ; 

Not thy sister's young arms to my neck as they cling, 
More tenderly ever caressed. 

Ye daughters of music, encircle the dead 1 

And chant the funereal song ; — 
The beauty, the glory of Israel have fled, 

And low in the dust lie the strong 



194 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JTTDSON. 



This is only one of many gems written when quite a 
child, and when it is remembered that her hands were 
filled with the homeliest domestic duties, and her head 
with the studies she was pursuing alone, these efforts are 
truly wonderful. 

At the age of seventeen, feeling the need of more 
books, and also of some further instruction in her 
studies, she took a children's school, toiling hard half her 
time to teach, for the privilege of studying hard the 
other half. Logic, Geometry, Latin, were amongst her 
studies ; and as her brothers and sisters grew old enough 
to benefit by her instructions, she imparted to them, one 
after another, the knowledge gained so hardly. 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



195 



CHAPTER II. 

PROFESSION OF RELIGION— POETRY ON DEATH OF COLMAK 
MARRIAGE — DEPARTURE FOR INDIA. 

In 1820 Sarah, now resolved to devote her whole life 
to God and his cause, made a public profession of reli- 
gion ; she took this important step with humility and a 
touehingly meek spirit. In her journal she wrote : 

"I have this day," (June 4th, 1820,) " in the pres- 
ence of the world, the holy angels, and the omniscient 
God, publicly manifested my determination to forsake 
the objects of earth, and live, henceforth for Heaven. 
What have I done ? Do I realize the importance of the 
step I have taken ? Oh, my Saviour ! I am weak, and 
the heart of man is deceitful ; but I do hope in thy mercy. 
Thou didst die even for the chief of sinners, and I know 
thou will pardon all who come to thee believing. Take 
me, dear Saviour, all sinful, unworthy as I am — do with 
me what thou wilt, but oh ! preserve me from wounding 
thy precious cause ! 

" I have to-day wept tears of pity, I can almost say 
anguish, at the stupidity of sinners. Inhabitants of a 
Christian country, the word of God in their hands ; the 
mild, compassionate Saviour waiting to receive them ; 
the Spirit striving, and yet they bent upon their own de- 



196 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



struction. But have I not more reason to be astonished 
and weep at my own coldness— I who have felt, that 
Jesus bled and died, even for my sins ; I wander from 
the way of life ! 6 Turn me, God, and I shall be 
turned ; draw me, and I shall run after thee.' 

" To-day I had a long and serious conversation with 
my beloved sister Harriet. Sweet child ! she wept when 
I told her of her dangerous state. I reminded her of the 
shortness of time, the certainty of death, the value of the 
soul,, and the terrors of the Day of Judgment; and she 
appeared greatly distressed. But alas ! I have reason 
to fear that her emotions were of a different nature from 
those I would fain excite. I know that she loves me tender- 
ly, and apprehensions of an eternal separation cannot fail 
to give her pain. Oh ! that the Holy Spirit might con- 
vince her, and convince my other sisters, and my brothers, 
of the importance of seeking an interest in the Saviour." 

The last paragraph illustrates the missionary spirit 
which so distinguished her later years. Her disposition 
was meek, retiring, and self-distrustful always, yet her 
love for Christ was strong, the ruling passion. She did 
not wait, letting this love lie dormant, till there was some 
great world-wide cause to exert it; in the home circle, 
tenderly and humbly she tried to raise the mind of her 
young sister to the happy trust and love she herself felt 
in Divine Providence. 

Three years later Mrs. Crosby writes of her thus : c£ My 
first particular accquaintance with Sarah Hall began in 
1823, when she called on me, and invited me to join the 
Tract Society, and engage in distributing tracts in a cer- 
tain district. At this time she was about eighteen years 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



197 



of age ; and from that period till her departure for glory, 
the most affectionate intercourse was maintained. In the 
tract labors she was assiduously engaged during her 
residence in Salem. Soon after this event, (the call 
above mentioned,) a few of her female friends indulged a 
trembling hope in the Saviour, and she succeeded in es- 
tablishing a prayer-meeting, where she was accustomed 
to meet them each week for several months, and the hap- 
py results were, that all but one came forward publicly 
and put on Christ. Although the attendants on this meet- 
ting were all her seniors, and some of them married la- 
dies, yet Miss Hall was the actual and acknowledged 
leader." 

In the life of Mrs. Ann Judson, there will be seen a no- 
tice of the death of Mr. Colman, one of the earliest mar- 
tyrs who fell fighting for the cross in Burmah. The news 
of his death spread through all America a sorrow, and 
awoke to new life and energy the missionary cause. 
Sarah Hall, with a saddened poetic fervor, wrote and pub- 
lished the following lines, when the news of his death 
reached her : 



'Tis the voice of deep sorrow from India's shore, 

The flower of our churches is withered, is dead, 
The gem that shone brightly will sparkle no more, 

And the tears of the Christian profusely are shed. 
Two youths of Columbia, with hearts glowing warm, 

Embarked on the billows far distant to rove, 
To bear to the nations all wrapped in thick gloom, 

The lamp of the gospel — the message of love. 
But Wheelock now slumbers beneath the cold wave, 
And Colman lies low in the dark, cheerless grave ; 



198 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



Mourn, daughters of Arracan, mourn ! 
The rays of that star, clear and bright, 
That so sweetly on Chittagong shone, 
Are shrouded in black clouds of night, 
For Colman is gone ! 

At that sorrowful hour, that moment of woe, 

When his cheek, lately glowing with health, was all pale ; 
And his lone wife, disconsolate, feeble and low, 

Was sad, and no Christian replied to her wail ; 
Did not angels in sympathy shed the soft tear, 

As they gazed from their thrones far beyond the blue sky ? 
Oh no ; for the seraph of mercy was near, 

To bid him rejoice, wipe the tear from her eye. 
They saw, and with rapture continued their lays, 
" How great is Jehovah ! how deep are his ways ! 
The spirit of love from on high, 
The hearts of the righteous hath fired ; 
Lo ! they come, and with transport they cry, 
We will go where our brother expired, 
And labour and die." 

Oh, Colman ! thy father weeps not on thy grave ; 

Thy heart-riven mother ne'er sighs o'er thy dust; 
But the long Indian grass there most sweetly shall wave, 

And the drops of the evening descend on the just; 
Cold, silent, and dark is thy narrow abode, 

But not long wilt thou sleep in that dwelling of gloom, 
For soon shall be heard the great trump of our God, 

To summon all nations to hear their last doom ; 
A garland of amaranth then shall be thine, 
And thy name on the martyrs' bright register shine ; 
Oh, what glory will burst on thy view, 
When are placed by the Judge of the earth 
The flowers that in India grew 
By thy care, on the never-pale wreath 
Encircling thy brow ! 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



199 



The death of Colman leaving a sad vacancy in the 
Mission at Burmah, George Boardman offered his servi- 
ces to fill the place of the young martyr. The son of a 
Baptist clergyman in Maine, he devoted himself after 
leaving college, where he graduated with honor, to the 
missionary cause. 

Whilst waiting for the finger of Providence to point 
out the scene of his missionary labors, he accepted the 
situation of tutor in college for one year, and then Col- 
man's death leaving the vacancy he panted to fill, he of- 
fered his services to the Board of Missions, who at once 
accepted his services. It being judged expedient, how- 
ever, for him to receive a theological education, he studied 
at Andover College until 1825, when he was appointed 
missionary to Burmah. 

Before the young missionary had ever met the future 
partner of his toils in India, the lines to Colman quoted 
above, had awakened an interest in their writer. They 
met soon after, and it did not require many interviews 
to prove that the interest in the salvation of heathen 
souls was as strongly excited in one mind as in the 
other. They loved each other with a rare tenderness, 
and were married in 1825, resolved to attempt together 
the arduous task of converting heathens to the true God. 

Mrs. Allen writes in the Mother's Journal the follow- 
ing account of the young missionary : 

" She was of about middle stature, agreeable in her 
personal appearance, and winning in her manners. The 
first impression of an observer respecting her, in her 
youth, at the time of her departure from the country, 
would be of a gentle, confiding, persuasive being, who 



200 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



would sweeten the cup of life to those who drank it with 
her. But farther acquaintance would develop strength 
as well as loveliness of character. It would be seen that 
she could do and endure as well as love and please. 
Sweetness and strength, gentleness and firmness, were 
in her character most happily blended. Her mind was 
both poetical and practical ; she had refined taste, and a 
love for the beautiful as well as the excellent.' ' 
In the same notice, she says : 

" If we mistake not, she had not at first the cordial 
consent of her family in this devotion of herself to a 
missionary life. She was a treasure too precious to be 
readily yielded up, even for this holy work. We recol- 
lect that when she left her paternal home to reach the 
ship which was to convey her 6 over the dark and distant 
sea,' after she had taken her seat in the stage-coach with 
her chosen companion, and the late revered Dr. Bolles, 
her pastor, and had bestowed her last farewell upon the 
family group, — as though she felt that she had not ob- 
tained that free and full consent to her abandonment of 
home and country which her filial heart craved, she 
looked out at the coach window, and said, 6 Father, are 
you willing ? Say, father, that you are willing I should 
go.' 6 Yes, my child, I am willing.' ' Now I can go 
joyfully!' was the emphatic response; and the noble 
wanderer went on her way with cheerful composure. 

" The mother's heart too, was wrung with anguish. At 
first, clasping her idolized child closely in her arms, she 
seemed utterly unable to give her consent to the separa- 
tion, and it was not until the last hours before her de- 
parture that she could falter, 'I hope I am willing.' " 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



201 



On the 16th of July, 1825, Mr. and Mrs. Boardman 
sailed for India, and in December arrived at Calcutta. 
Mr. Boardman writes home : 

u It gives me much pleasure to write you from the 
shores of India. Through the goodness of God we ar- 
rived at Sand-Heads on the 23d ult., after a voyage of 
127 days. We were slow in our passage up the Hoogly, 
and did not arrive in Calcutta until the 2d inst. We 
had a very agreeable voyage, — religious service at meals, 
evening prayers in the cabin, and when the weather 
allowed, public worship in the steerage on Lord's-day 
morning . . . allow me to add that we entertain a hope 
that one of the sailors was converted on the passage. 

" The report of our being at Sand-Heads reached 
Calcutta several days before we did, and our friends had 
made kind preparations to receive us. Soon after com- 
ing in sight of the city, we had the pleasure of welcoming 
on board the Asia the Rev. Mr. Hough. He informed 
us that the Burmese war was renewed, after an armistice 
of several weeks, and that no well-authenticated accounts 
had been received from our dear friends, Judson and 
Price at Ava. It is generally supposed that they are 
imprisoned with other foreigners, and have not the means 
of sending round to Bengal. 

At noon, Dec. 2d, we came on shore, . . . and were 
received very kindly by the English Missionaries. We 
found Mrs. Colman waiting with a carriage to bring us 
out to this place. The cottage we occupy was formerly 
the residence of Mr. and Mrs. Eustace Carey. Mr. and 
Mrs. Wade, Mrs. Colman, Mrs. Boardman and myself, 
compose a very happy American family. . . . But we 



202 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



long to be laboring in Burmah. We are not yet discour- 
aged by the dark cloud that hangs over our prospects 
there. We still hope and trust, we firmly believe, that 
eventually this war will tend to advance the cause of 
Christ in Burmah. We hope our friends at home will 
not be discouraged, but will continue to pray for us." 

In another letter he says, " And now, my dear parents, 
I wish you could make a visit at Chitpore. You would 
find your two fond children sitting together very happily, 
and engaged in writing letters to their beloved American 
friends. Our mansion, to be sure, is but a bamboo cot- 
tage, with a thatched roof, but is a palace compared with 
most of the native huts around us. But you know a 
large house is by no means essential to happiness. Food 
and clothing sufficient, with the presence of God, are all 
that is absolutely necessary. Could a man have in ad- 
dition, one confidential friend, who sympathized in all 
his joys and sorrows, and with whom he could enjoy all 
the endearments of social life, he might be happy indeed 
— and such a friend, such a wife I have in my beloved 
Sarah. I fear I shall never be able to discharge the ob- 
ligations I feel toward you for conferring on me so great 
a blessing." 

All missionary labor was suspended at Burmah at the 
time Mr. and Mrs. Boardman arrived at Calcutta, and 
they were obliged to remain in that place until the war 
closed. They occupied their time, however, in studying 
the language, and preparing themselves for future labors. 
Mrs. Boardman writes, in 1827 : 

" I sometimes think that of all God's creatures, I have 
most occasion for gratitude. Since I bade adieu to my 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



203 



native land, the events that have transpired in relation 
to me have been one series of mercies. I am blest with 
excellent health, a most affectionate husband, a lovely- 
daughter, and everything in my outward circumstances 
to make me comfortable and happy. In view of these 
temporal mercies, I can indeed say my cup runneth 
over ! But when I think of my spiritual privileges, I 
am still more overwhelmed. Among these, the near 
prospect of being actually engaged in the glorious cause 
of missions, is by no means the least. I still feel it to 
be a privilege of which I am utterly unworthy, but for 
which, I hope, I am not altogether unthankful/ ' 

In writing of her at this period, one of her English 
friends pronounced her, a lovely wife, fond mother, win- 
ning companion, and "the most finished and faultless 
specimen of an American woman." 



204 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON, 



CHAPTER III. 

REMOVAL TO MATJLMAIN FIRST PERIL IN THEIR NEW 

HOME — REMOVAL TO TAVOY — MISSIONARY LABORS — IN- 
TEREST IN THE KARENS. 

In April, 1827, Mr. and Mrs. Boardman removed to 
Amherst, to commence those missionary labors for which 
they had forsaken home, friends, and country. Here, 
Mrs. Boardman was first attacked with the disease which 
made her an invalid for many years. 

Resolving, after a short stay at Amherst, to remove 
to Maulmain, twenty-five miles from Amherst, as it pre- 
sented a w T ider field for usefulness, they erected there a 
bamboo hut, and, although so feeble as to be carried on 
a litter to her new home, Mrs. Boardman accompanied 
her husband. 

The mission-house was in a lonely spot, a mile from 
the cantonments, and open to the ravages of wild 
beasts, and men as savage. The English urged the mis- 
sionaries to reside within the cantonments, but wishing 
to study the Burmese character and language amongst 
the natives, to be more useful in the future to them, he 
refused, although fully alive to the dangers of his unpro- 
tected situation. 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



205 



Mrs. Boardman's delicate blonde beauty, the soft, fair 
curls, and white skin, were matters of the most profound as- 
tonishment and curiosity amongst the savages now around 
her. As she progressed in the language, she invited all w T ho 
came near the hut to enter, and particularly devoted her 
attention to the endeavor to win the love of the chil- 
dren. 

I quote from Fanny Forrester's life of Mrs. Judson, 
the following account of the first peril of the mission- 
aries in their new home : 

" On the evening of the fourth day, as it deepened 
into night, the books of study were thrown aside, and 
the book of God taken in their stead ; then the prayer 
was raised to heaven, and the little family went to rest. 
Feeble were the rays of the one pale lamp, close by the 
pillow of the young mother, scarce throwing its light 
upon the infant resting in her bosom, and penetrating 
into the remote darkness, but by feeble flickerings. So 
sleep soon brooded over the shut eyelids, and silence 
folded its solemn wings about the little habitation. 

" The infant stirred, and the mother opened her eyes. 
Why was she in darkness ? and what objects were those 
scattered so strangely about her apartment, just distin- 
guishable from the gray shadows ? The lamp was soon 
relighted, and startling was the scene which it revealed. 
There lay, in odd' confusion, trunks, boxes, and chests 
of drawers, all rifled of their contents; and strewed 
carelessly about the floor, were such articles as the ma- 
rauders had not considered w T orth their taking. While 
regarding in consternation, not appreciable by those who 
aave access to the shops of an American city, this spoil- 



206 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



ing of their goods, Mrs. Boardman chanced to raise her 
eye tio the curtain, beneath which her husband had slept, 
and she thought of the lost goods no more. Two long 
gashes, one at the head, and the other at the foot, had 
been cut in the muslin ; and there had the desperate 
villains stood, glaring on the unconscious sleepers with 
their fierce, murderous eyes, while the booty was secured 
by their companions. The bared, sw 7 arthy arm was 
ready for the blow, and the sharp knife or pointed spear 
glittered in their hands. Had the sleeper opened his 
eyes, had he only stirred, had but a heavy, long-drawn 
breath startled the cowardice of guilt — ah, had it ! But 
it did not. The rounded limbs of the little infant lay 
motionless as their marble counterfeit ; for if the rosy 
lips had moved but to the slightest murmur, or the tiny 
hand crept closer to the loved bosom in her baby dreams, 
the chord in the mother's breast must have answered, 
and the death-stroke followed. But the mother held her 
treasure to her heart and slept on. Murderers stood by 
the bedside, regarding with callous heart, the beautiful 
tableau ; and the husband and father slept. But there 
w r as one Eye open — the Eye that never slumbers; a 
protecting wing was over them, and a soft, invisible hand 
pressed down their sleeping lids. 

" Nearly every article of value that could be taken 
away, had disappeared from the house : and, though 
strict search was made throughout the neighborhood, no 
trace of them was ever discovered. After this incident, 
Sir Archibald Campbell furnished the house with a guard 
of Sepoys during the night, and as the rapid increase of 
the population soon gave it a central position in the 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



207 



town, the danger of such attacks was very much les- 
sened/' 

Still, heroic in their determination to do good even to 
the ruthless robbers who had taken their worldly goods 
from them, they remained in the hut, striving, by smiles 
and gentle gestures, to tell the natives, before their 
tongues could frame the uncouth dialect, their love for 
them, and kind intentions toward them. 

It was not until the spring of 1828, that Mr. Board- 
man's missionary labors really commenced. He then 
removed to Tavoy. An unforeseen difficulty here awaited 
them, for the corrupt dialect of the Tavoyians differed 
widely from the pure Burmese, and they had again to 
conquer the difficulties of a new language. 

In addition to his labors as a preacher, Mr. Boardman 
established in Tavoy, a boy's school, and after great toil 
and many discouragements, Mrs. Boardman succeeded 
in opening one for girls. Four of Mr. Boardman's 
scholars had accompanied him from Maulmain, and were 
boarding scholars, so that Mrs. Boardman's hands were, 
with family cares, study, and her own school, well filled. 

A strong interest was felt by both Mr. and Mrs. 
Boardman in the Karens, a most savage, ignorant set of 
men, who live far from the Burmese towns, having no 
settled dwelling-place, but inhabiting the wildest retreats 
in mountain and forest. One of Mr. Boardman's first 
works after his arrival, was to baptize Ko-Thah-Byoo, a 
zealous disciple, instructed in the true religion by Dr, 
Judson. He carried the news of his conversion to his 
countrymen, and declared that the unknown, hoped-for 
religion of their fathers, lost for many generations, was 



208 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



at last restored by the white teachers. Others came to 
listen. They were docile, sensitive, and childlike m 
their faith, and Mr. Boardman felt the keenest interest 
in their conversion. 

In the museum of the Baptist Missionary Society, is 
a book brought by these savages from their mountain 
fastness to Mr. Boardman. It had been left years 
before, by a foreigner who commanded them to worship 
it, and in unquestioning faith the command was obeyed. 
Upon taking it from the numerous folds of muslin in 
which it was enveloped, Mr. Boardman found an Oxford 
edition of the Common Prayer Book, in English. He 
gave them in its stead, portions of Mr. Judson's transla- 
tion of the Bible, which they could read and under- 
stand. Their constant entreaty to him was to visit their 
brethren, who could not come to him, and he promised 
to do so. 

In February, 1829, the first visit was made. Mrs. 
Boardman, with her two children, the youngest a son 
only six months old, was left, although still feeble from 
the effects of an illness of four months' duration, alone, 
with only the dusky natives around her. 

Mr. Boardman was only recovering from the first 
serious attack of pulmonary disease, which had visited 
him in India, when he started upon this tour ; but the 
eager welcome, childlike love, and strong desire to learn 
the words of truth manifested by the Karens, made the 
tour delicious, in spite of physical weakness, and some- 
times suffering. 

A severe trial awaited him upon his return. In his 
little church, sin had entered with its deadly blight, and 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



209 



the keenest suffering was felt by both Mr. and Mrs. 
Boardman, who each felt that perhaps they had not done 
their duty towards the converts. Mrs. Boardman writes 
to Mrs. Bolles : 

" Some of these poor Burmans, who are daily carried 
to the grave, may at last reproach me, and say, 6 You 
came, it is true, to the city where we dwelt, to tell of 
neaven and hell, but wasted much, much of your precious 
time in indolence, while acquiring our language. And, 
when you were able to speak, why were you not inces- 
santly telling us of this day of doom, when we visited 
you ? why, oh, why did you ever speak of any other 
thing while we were ignorant of the most momentous of 
all truths? Oh! how could you think on anything bat 
our salvation ? How could you sleep, or allow yourself 
anything like ease or comfort, while we were perishing, 
and you knew a Being who could save us, and that Being 
had promised to grant the petition of his children ? You 
told us that He was your Father, and that He heard your 
lowest whispers, and most secret sighs — why, then, did 
you not, day and night, entreat Him in our behalf.' 

" Mr. Boardman will tell you of the heart-rending 
afflictions which we have been called to endure in our 
little church. Our hearts have almost bled with anguish, 
and mine has sunk lower than the grave, for I have felt 
that my unworthiness has been the cause of all our calam- 
ities." 

In the spring of 1829, Mrs. Boardman was again 
seized with a severe illness. The baby, too, was weak, 
puny, and ailing, and each day added to the delicacy of 
14 



210 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



Mr. Boardman's health. Sarah, the eldest child, the 
darling of both parents, alone continued in robust health. 

A short trip was taken to Mergui for the benefit of 
sea air and sea bathing, and the family returned with 
renewed health to the scene of their labors. 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



211 



CHAPTER IV- 

DEATH OF THE FIRST BORN. 

Although in the visits of illness made to the little 
missionary family, Sarah always seemed exempt, yet 
death's ruthless hand fell first upon her fair brow. No 
language can tell the sad story so touchingly as that of 
the bereaved mother, she writes : 

" Our little Sarah left us July 8th, of last year — aged 
two years and eight months. * * * She was a singular- 
ly lovely child. Her bright blue eyes, yellow hair, and 
rosy cheeks, formed a striking contrast to the little dark 
faces around her ; and I often said — 

Thou art a sweet and fragrant flower, 
Mid poisonous, vile weeds blooming; 

A lovely star, whose cheering power 

Makes glad the heavy-footed hour, 
When midnight clouds are glooming. 

" From the time she began to notice anything, we were 
the objects of her fondest love. If she thought she had 
incurred our displeasure, her tender heart seemed ready 
to burst ; and she could not rest for a moment, until she 



212 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



had said she was 6 sorry/ and obtained the kiss of for- 
giveness. She had learned to obey us implicitly. * * * 
Always when she saw us kneeling to pray, she would 
come and kneel beside us. On observing me one day 
going to a small house for prayer, near the spot where 
her precious dust now sleeps, she said to Marian and 
Rosina, i Go back ! I will go alone with mama to pray !' 
She followed me to the place, and as soon as she entered 
it, threw herself on her knees and commenced praying. 

" She was an exceedingly sensitive child. She was not 
only afflicted at sight of our tears, but even a sorrowful 
look from us melted her tender heart, and incited her to 
do all in her power to alleviate our sorrows. If we 
frowned upon her conduct, she wept, kissed us, and re- 
frained from committing the same fault again. If either 
of us was ill, her heart seemed overflowing with grief ; 
and she would say, in tones of touching tenderness, 
4 Mama,' (or papa,) ill — Sarah very sad. Mama can- 
not take Sarah now.' And she would come and stroke 
our foreheads with her little soft hand, and kiss us so 
affectionately ! Her love to her little brother George 
was unlimited. From the day of his .birth till the day 
but one before she died, he was her idol. If she wanted 
anything ever so much, only tell her it was for Georgie, 
and that was enough to satisfy her. She never envied 
him an article of dress or food, or a play-thing, but 
would always resign her choicest toys to her d§ar little 
brother. Three days before she died, she was lying un- 
easily in a large swing cradle, and George was in the 
same room, crying. We thought it might soothe the 
little sufferer, for he was also very ill, to lay him down 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



21S 



beside Sarah. The proposal delighted her ; with smiles 
she threw open her little arms, and, for the last time, 
held her darling brother in her fond embrace. So great 
was her gratification at this privilege, that she seemed 
to forget her'own pains. 

" Little Sarah spoke English remarkably well for so 
young a child, and Burmese, like a native ; she could also 
say some things in the Hindostanee and Karen. And 
what seems a little singular, she never confounded two 
languages, but always spoke pure English to us, and pure 
Burmese to Burmans. This discrimination continued as 
long as she had the powers of speech. She had learned 
the Lord's prayer and several little hymns. Dr. Jud- 
son's lines on the death of Mee-Shway-ee she knew by 
heart in Burmese, and used to chant them. for half an 
hour at a time. She had nearly learned the Burman 
and English alphabets, and could repeat the names of 
the months, days of the week, and a part of the multi- 
plication-table, in Burmese. These things may seem 
very trivial to you, but I muse upon them by the hour to- 
gether ; and it is only when I call my cooler judgment 
into action, that I can make myself believe they are un 
interesting to any person on earth. I love to think of 
my sweet bud of immortality, expanding so beautifully 
in my own presence ; and fancy I can judge, in some 
small degree, of the brilliancy of the perfect flower, 
from these little developments. 

" A few hours before she died, she called us to her, kissed 
us, and passed her dear hand, still full and dimpled, as 
in health, softly over our faces. The pupils of her eye 
were so dilated that she could not see us distinctly, and 



214 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



once, for a moment or two, her mind seemed to be wan- 
dering ; then looking anxiously into my face, she said, 6 1 
frightened, mama ! I frightened !' * * * Oh ! with 
what feelings did I wash and dress her lovely form for the 
last time, and compose her perfect little limbs ; and then 
see her — the dear child, which had so long lain in my 
bosom — borne away to her newly-made grave. My heart 
grew faint when I thought that I had performed for her 
my last office of love ; that she would never need a mo- 
ther's hand again. My dear husband performed the fu- 
neral service with an aching, though not desponding heart. 
The grave is in our own enclosure, about fifteen rods from 
the house — a beautiful, retired spot, in a grove of Gan- 
gau trees. Near it is a little Bethel, erected for private 
devotion. Thither we have often repaired ; and we trust 
that God, who in his infinite wisdom has taken our treas- 
ure to himself, often meets us there/ ' 

" It never once occurred to me, all the time my child 
was with me, that she could die ; she seemed always so 
full of life and health." 

After George's recovery she writes : 

" We have a fine healthy boy ; but I do not allow my- 
self to idolize him as I did his sister. In her dissolution 
we saw such a wreck of all that was beautiful and lovely, 
that I think we shall henceforth be kept from worship- 
ing the creature.' ' 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



215 



CHAPTER V. 

REVOLT AT TAVOY — BIRTH AND DEATH OF THE SECOND SON. 

Terrible scenes were now preparing for the devoted 
missionaries. I quote Mr. Boardman's letter, which 
gives the plainest account of the trying season, though 
language would fail to paint half the horror of the trial 
to his gentle wife : — 

Rev. and dear Sir : 

The province of Tavoy has engaged in an open revolt 
against the British government. On Lord's-day morn- 
ing, the 9th inst., at 4 o'clock, we were aroused from our 
quiet slumbers by the cry of, 4 Teacher, master, Tavoy 
rebels,' and ringing at all our doors and windows. We 
were soon awoke to our extreme danger, as we heard not 
only a continual report of musketry within the town, 
but the balls were frequently passing over our heads and 
through our house ; and in a few moments a large com- 
pany of Tavoyans collected near our gate, and gave us 
reason to suspect they were consulting what to do with 
us. We lifted our hearts to God for protection, and 
Mrs. Boardman and little George were hurried away 
through a back door to a retired building in the rear. I 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



lay down in the house, (to escape the bullets,) with a 
single Burman boy, to watch and communicate the first 
intelligence. After an hour of the greatest anxiety and 
uncertainty I had the happiness of seeing the sepoys 
(troops in the British service) in possession of the city 
gates, in front of our house. We soon ascertained that 
a party of about 250 men had, in the first instance, at- 
tacked the powder magazine and gun shed, which were 
very near our house, but a guard of sepoys had repelled 
them. This was a great mercy, for had the insurgents 
obtained the arms and ammunition, our situation would 
have been most deplorable. A second party of sixty had 
attacked the house of the principal native officer of the 
town, while a third party had fallen upon the guard of 
the prison, and let loose all the prisoners, one hundred 
in number, who, as soon as their irons were knocked off, 
became the most desperate of all the insurgents/' 

In a moment of comparative quiet Mr. Boardman fled 
with his wife and the poor babe, moaning with illness, to 
the government house, where Mrs. Burney received them 
most kindly. He says, in continuing his letter : 

We caught up a few light articles on which we could 
lay our hands, and with the native Christians, fled as if 
for our lives. I visited the house once or twice after 
this, and saved a few clothes and papers, but the firing 
being near, rendered it hazardous to remain, and the last 
time I went I found the house had been plundered. A 
large part of our books, furniture, and clothes, which 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



217 



had remained behind were either taken away or de- 
stroyed. 

We had been at the government house but a short 
time when it was agreed to evacuate the town and retire 
to the wharf. In the hurry of our second removal, 
many things which we had brought from our house, were 
necessarily left, to fall into the hands of the plunderers. 
We soon found ourselves at the wharf, — a large wooden 
building of six rooms, into which, besides the Europeans, 
were huddled all the sepoys with their baggage and ours, 
and several hundreds of women and children belonging 
to Portuguese and others, who looked to the English for 
protection. Our greatest danger at this time arose from 
having, in one of the rooms where many were to sleep, 
and all of us were continually passing, several hundred 
barrels of gunpowder, to which, if fire should be com- 
municated accidentally by ourselves, or mischievously 
by others, we should all perish at once. The next dan- 
ger was from the rebels, who, if they could either rush 
upon us, or take us by surprise or stratagem, would 
doubtless massacre us all on the spot. We lifted up our 
hearts to God, and he heard us from his holy habitation. 
We were preserved in safety through the night, though 
anxious and sleepless. All our attempts to communicate 
intelligence of our situation to the people in Maulmain 
and Mergui were defeated, and the heavy rains soon af- 
fected the health of the sepoys. We had but a small 
supply of rice in the granary near the wharf, and that 
was continually in danger of being destroyed or burnt. 
But through the kind care of our Heavenly Father, we 
were preserved alive, and nothing of great importance 



218 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



occurred until the morning of Thursday, a little before 
day-break, when a party of 500 advanced upon us from 
the town, and set fire to several houses and vessels near 
the wharf. But God interposed in our behalf, and sent 
a heavy shower of rain, which extinguished the fire while 
the sepoys repelled the assailants. 

At breakfast, the same morning, we had the happiness 
of seeing the Diana steam-vessel coming up the river, 
with Major Burney on board. Our hearts bounded with 
gratitude to God. It was soon agreed that the Diana 
should return immediately to Maulmain for a reinforce- 
ment of troops, and Major Burney had the kindness tc 
offer a passage for Mrs. Boardman and our family to- 
gether with his own. After looking to God for direc- 
tion, I concluded to remain behind, partly in compliance 
with Major Burney's advice and desire, but particularly 
in the hope of being useful as an interpreter and nego- 
tiator, and a preventer of bloodshed. With painful 
pleasure I took a hasty leave of my dear family, and in 
the evening the Diana left us, not, however, without hav- 
ing several shots from cannon or jinjals fired at her from 
the people on the city wall, The English forces, small, 
and weak, and sick, as they were, were now throwing up 
breast- works ; and on Saturday, the 15th inst., it was 
agreed to make an attack on the town, in order, if pos- 
sible, to take from the walls the large guns that bore 
upon us, and to try the strength of the rebel party. I 
stood at the post of observation with a spy-glass to watch 
and give the earliest notice of the event, and soon had 
the pleasure of announcing that the officers and sepoys 
had scaled the walls, and were pitching down, outside, 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



219 



the large guns that were mounted there, while friendly 
Chinese were employed in carrying them to the wharf. 
The success was complete, and nothing remained but to 
rescue the prisoners (sixty in number) whom the rebels had 
caught and confined. After a short cessation and a little 
refreshment, a second attack was made, during which the 
prisoners escaped, and the rebels evacuated the city. A 
second battery of guns was also taken and brought to 
the wharf. In the morning we walked at large through 
the town ; but what desolation, what barbarous destruc- 
tion was everywhere exhibited ! everything that could 
not be carried away had been cut and destroyed in the 
most wanton manner. Our own house was cut to pieces, 
our books cut, scattered, torn, and destroyed ; our furni- 
ture either carried off, or cut, or broken in pieces, and 
the house itself and zayat converted into cook-houses 
and barracks. During the last three days, we have been 
picking up the scattered fragments of our furniture, 
books, &c, and repairing our house. 

Nga-Dah, the ringleader of the rebellion, and eleven 
of his principal adherents, have been caught. The in- 
habitants are coming in with white flags, and occupying 
their houses. The bazaar is open, and the work of re- 
pairs is going on. 

Yesterday morning the Diana arrived with a reinforce- 
ment of European soldiers ; and to-day I have come on 
board, expecting to proceed to Maulmain immediately. 
My present plan is, if my brethren approve, to return 
with my family, and resume our missionary labors as be- 
fore. The native members of our church, now scattered, 
will probably come into town as soon as they hear of our 



220 



LIFE OF SAKAH B. JUDSON. 



return. Of the boarding scholars, all are with us except 
three Karens. 

My letter is already protracted to so great a length, 
that I can only add that our preservation and deliver- 
ance from such imminent danger, should awaken in our 
hearts the warmest gratitude to our Heavenly Father, 
and the most unwavering confidence in his kind care ; 
and that the foregoing account should revive and deepen 
the impression made by previous events in the history 
of this mission, that we stand in need of the continual 
and fervent prayers of Christians in America, not only 
for our preservation, but for divine guidance in all our 
affairs. 

I remain, yours, 

G. D. BOARDMAN. 

P. S. Saturday morning, August 22d. — I have just ar- 
rived at Maulmain, and have the happiness to find my 
family and missionary friends in comfortable health. 
Praised be the Lord for his goodness. 

Aug. 29th. — After much deliberation, it is thought 
best that I should leave my family here till affairs are 
more settled. ... I expect to embark for Tavoy to- 
morrow morning. May the Spirit of all grace go with 
me ! 

Mrs. Boardman's situation was one of the greatest 
suffering and peril. Mrs. Burney and herself were the 
only females in the government house, and every hour 
threatened the lives of all who had gone there for refuge. 
Her babe was so ill as to require constant care, and she 
hardly expected him to come alive out of his great peril. 



LIFE OF SAKAH B. JUDSON. 



221 



Mrs. Burney's infant, only three weeks old, died from 
the exposure of those terrible days, but God, in his 
mercy spared Mr. Boardman's only son. 

The exposure, however, was so great, and Mrs. Board- 
man's strength so much overtasked that a severe fit of 
illness ensued, in the course of which her second son, 
Judson Wade, was born, and after a brief existence was 
laid, like his fair sister, in the grave. 



222 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



CHAPTER VI. 

ILLNESS OF MRS. BOARBMAN — MR. BOARDMAN'S FAILING 

HEALTH. 

The death of the little one whose tiny span of life 
ended so soon, was a heavy trial to Mrs. Boardman, but 
her greatest affliction was yet in store. Exposure, during 
the revolt at Tavoy, and the great excitement under 
which he had then labored, united to bring upon Mr. 
Boardman his pulmonary disease, in its worst form. 
Consumption, the fell destroyer, marked the young mis- 
sionary for his victim, and he sank slowly, but surely. 

Still, however, he pursued his calling, making visits to 
the Karens, or preaching in his little church at Tavoy. 
In January, Mrs. Boardman was so low that her hus- 
band saw no prospect before her but the grave ; but in 
March she took a trip to Maulmain, where she again re- 
covered her health. In April, Mr. Boardman also came 
to Maulmain, to take the place of Messrs. Judson and 
Wade, who left their station for a time, to fulfill other 
missionary duties. 

Mr. Boardman's health still continued to decline. 
From her far off Indian home, Mrs. Boardman sends to 
her parents the wail of a stricken heart. To see him 
sink daily, losing strength slowly but too, too surely, was 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



223 



agony to the loving heart ; yet in all her anguish, not 
one word of rebellion against the Divine will occurs. 
"Not my will, but thine be done," she ever whispers. 

In November, they returned to Tavoy, where they 
were eagerly welcomed by the affectionate Karens. Mrs. 
Boardman writes in January : 

" They (the Karens,) had heard of Mr. Boardman's 
illness ; and the sadness depicted on their countenances, 
when they saw him so pale and emaciated, affected me 
much. I felt that God had, indeed, raised me up sym- 
pathizing friends, even in the wilderness, among those 
who are considered barbarians by the Burmans them- 
selves. Before we had been here a fortnight, one party 
came for the sole purpose of seeing us and hearing the 
gospel. They remained four days, and the eagerness 
with which they listened to our instructions, and the deep 
interest they manifested in religious affairs, reminded 
us of our associations at home. 

" The first three days were spent in examining candi- 
dates for baptism, and conversing with, and instructing 
those who had been previously baptized. Sometimes 
Mr. Boardman sat up in a chair, and addressed them 
for a few moments ; but often er, I sat on his sick couch, 
and interpreted his feeble whispers. He was nearly 
overcome by the gladdening prospect, and frequently 
wept. But the most touchingly interesting time was the 
day bef are they left us, when nineteen were baptized. * 
* * Our road lay through that part of the town which 
is filled with monasteries ; and over the huge brick walls 
we could see multitudes of priests and noviciates looking 
at us — I doubt not with mingled scorn and hatred. As 



224 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



to the common people, they reviled us openly, and in so 
cruel a manner, that my heart was ready to burst. Mr. 
Boardman was too ill to walk or ride on horseback, and 
there being no other mode of conveyance in the town, 
the Karens carried him out on his little cot. 4 See !' said 
the revilers, in bitter ridicule, to two Tavoyan disciples, 
4 see your teacher ! — a living man carried as if he were 
already dead !' But I will not shock your feelings by 
repeating their taunts. We pitied them, and passed on 
in silence. At length we reached a beautiful pond, 
nearly a mile in circumference, and bordered by green 
trees. Here we stopped — a party of about fifty in num- 
ber — and kneeling on the grass, implored the Divine 
blessing. Then Moung Ing administered the ordinance 
of baptism to nineteen believers, who were, a little time 
ago, in utter ignorance of the true God. * * * During 
this scene, grief and joy alternately took possession of 
my breast. To see so many in this dark, heathen land 
6 putting on Christ,' could but fill me with joy and grat- 
itude ; but when I looked at my beloved husband, lying 
pale on his couch, and recollected the last time we stood 
by those waters, my heart could not but be sad at the 
contrast. It was on a similar occasion, and the surround- 
ing mountains echoed with his voice, as he pronounced 
the words, ' 1 baptize thee,' &c. Now his strength was 
exhausted, his voice was weak ; and the thought that I 
should no more see him administer this blessed ordinance, 
filled me with inexpressible grief. But in the evening, 
when we came together to receive from him the emblems 
of our Saviour's sufferings, my feelings changed. He 
made an effort, and God helped him to go through with 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



226 



the exercises alone, and without any apparent injury to 
his health. A breathless silence pervaded the room, 
excepting the sound of his voice, which was so low and 
feeble, that it seemed to carry the assurance that we 
should feast no more together, till we met in our Father's 
kingdom. When he handed us the cup, it was to me as 
though our Saviour had been in the midst; and I could 
say, 

1 How sweet and awful is the place, 
With Christ within the doors/ 

" The grief and anguish which I felt at the baptism, 
had subsided into a calm ; and in contemplating the 
agonies of our blessed Redeemer, I, for a moment, for- 
got the bitter cup preparing for my self.' ' 

Another year opened to find the gentle martyr still 
lingering beside his loved wife, still directing her efforts 
when his own feeble voice could not be exerted above a 
whisper, still calling around him the dark -browed chil- 
dren, for whose eternal welfare he had lain down his 
life. Just one year previous, over what he then believed 
to be the death-bed of his wife, he had written : 

" She still grows weaker, and her case is now more 
alarming. All missionary labor has been suspended for 
a week, to allow me all my time in taking care of her. 
I have written to Maulmain for some of bur friends to 
come to our assistance, and be with us, at this critical 
time ; and we hope they will be able and disposed to 
comply with the request. Should they come even imme- 
diately, I can scarcely hope for their arrival before the 
crisis, or probably, fatal termination, of my dear part- 
15 



226 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



ner's disorder. My comfort, in my present affliction, is 
the thought, that if to our former trials, the Lord sees 
fit to add that of removing my beloved companion, He 
does it with a perfect knowledge of all the blessedness, 
which death, in its consequences, will confer on her, and 
of all the sorrows and distresses which her loss will occa- 
sion her bereaved husband and orphan children, in the 
peculiarities of our present condition. It affords me 
great relief to have been assured by her, that the bitter- 
ness of death is past, and that heavenly glories have 
been unfolded in a wonderful and unexpected manner to 
her view." 

A year later, he writes to his sister : 

"During my present protracted illness, and especially 
when I was at the worst stage, she was the tenderest, 
most assiduous, attentive, and affectionate of nurses. 
Without her, I think I should have finished my career 
in a few days. And even when our lamented, darling 
babe lay struggling in the very arms of death, though 
she was with him constantly, night and day, she did not 
allow me to suffer one moment, for lack of her attentions. 
I cannot write what I feel on this tender subject. But 
oh ! what kindness in our Heavenly Father, that when 
her services were so much needed, her health was pre- 
served, and she had strength given her to perform her 
arduous labors." 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



227 



CHAPTER VII. 

DEATH OF MR. BOARDMAN. 

The Rev. Francis Mason, appointed to be the assist- 
ant of Mr. Boardman, arrived at Tavoy, in January, 
1831, in time to be with Mr. Boardman in his last 
hours. 

Mrs. Boardman's beautiful, touching letter to her pa- 
rents, gives such an account of her husband's death, as 
it would be useless for any other pen to attempt. 

She writes : 

Tavoy, March 7th, 1831. 

My beloved Parents :— 

With a heart glowing with joy, and at the same time 
rent with anguish unutterable, I take my pen to address 
you. You, too, will rejoice when you hear what God 
has wrought through the instrumentality of your beloved 
son. Yes, you will bless God that you were enabled to 
devote him to this blessed service among the heathen, 
when I tell you that, within the last two months, fifty- 
seven have been baptized, all Karens, excepting one, a 
little boy of the school, and son of the native governor. 
Twenty-three were baptized in this city by Moung Ing, 
and thirty-four in their native wilderness by Mr. Mason, 



228 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



Mr. Mason arrived January 23d, and on the 31st, he, 
with Mr. Boardman, myself, and George, set out on a 
long-promised tour among the Karens. Mr. Boardman 
was very feeble, but we hoped the change of air and 
scenery would be beneficial. A company of Karens had 
come to convey us out, Mr. Boardman on his bed, and 
me in a chair. We reached the place on the third day, 
and found they had erected a bamboo chapel on a beau- 
tiful stream at the base of a range of mountains. The 
place was central, and nearly one hundred persons had 
assembled, more than half of them applicants for bap- 
tism. Oh ! it was a sight calculated to call forth the 
liveliest joy of which human nature is susceptible, and 
made me, for a moment, forget my bitter griefs — a sight 
far surpassing all I had ever anticipated, even in my 
.most sanguine hours. The Karens cooked, ate, and slept 
on the ground, by the river-side, with no other shelter 
than the trees of the forest. Three years ago they were 
sunk in the lowest depths of ignorance and superstition. 
Now, the glad tidings of mercy had reached them, and 
they were willing to live in the open air, away from their 
homes, for the sake of enjoying the privileges of the 
gospel. 

My dear husband had borne the journey better than 
we had feared, though he suffered from exhaustion and 
pain in his side, which, however, was much relieved by a 
little attention. His spirits were unusually good, and 
we fondly hoped that a few days' residence in that de- 
lightful, airy spot, surrounded by his loved Karens, 
would recruit and invigorate his weakened frame. But 
I soon perceived he was failing, and tenderly urged his 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



229 



return to town, where he could enjoy the quiet of home, 
and the benefit of medical advice. But he repelled the 
thought at once, saying he confidently expected improve- 
ment from the change, and that the disappointment 
would be .worse for him than staying. " And even," 
added he, " should my poor, unprofitable life be some- 
what shortened by staying, ought I, on that account 
merely, to leave this interesting field ? Should I not 
rather stay and assist in gathering in these dear scattered 
lambs of the fold ? You know, Sarah, that coming on a 
foreign mission involves the probability of a shorter 
life, than staying in one's native country. And yet, 
obedience to our Lord, and compassion for the perishing 
heathen, induced us to make this sacrifice. And have 
we ever repented that we came ? No ; I trust we 
can both say that we bless Grod for bringing us to Bur- 
mah, for directing our footsteps to Tavoy, and even for 
leading us hither. You already know, my love," he con- 
tinued, with a look of tenderness never to be foi gotten, 
" that I cannot live long, I must sink under this disease ; 
and should we go home now, the all-important business 
which brought us out, must be given up, and I might lin- 
ger out a few days of suffering, stung with the reflection 
that I had preferred a few idle days, to my Master's ser- 
vice. Do not, therefore, ask me to go, till these poor 
Karens have been baptized." I saw he was right, but 
my feelings revolted. Nothing seemed so valuable as his 
life, and I felt that I could make any sacrifice to prolong 
it, though it were but for one hour. Still, a desire to 
gratify him, if no higher motive, made me silent, though 
my heart ached to see him so ill in such a wretched place, 



230 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



deprived of many of the comforts of life, to say nothing 
of the indulgences desirable in sickness. 

The chapel was large, but open on all sides, excepting 
a small place built up for Mr. Mason, and a room about 
five feet wide, and ten feet long, for the accommodation 
of Mr. Boardman and myself, with our little boy. The 
roof was so low, that I could not stand upright, and it 
was but poorly enclosed, so that he was exposed to the 
burning rays of the sun by day, and to the cold winds 
and damp fog by night. But his mind was happy, and 
he would often say, " If I live to see this one ingather- 
ing, I may well exclaim, with happy Simeon, Lord, now 
lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy 
word, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation. How many 
ministers have wished they might die in their pulpits ; 
and would not dying in a spot like this be even more 
blessed than dying in a pulpit at home ? I feel that it 
would." 

Nor was it merely the pleasing state of things around 
him that filled his mind with comfort. He would some- 
times dwell on the infinite compassion of God, and his 
own un worthiness, till his strength was quite exhausted ; 
and though he told Mr. Mason that he had not the rap- 
ture which he had sometimes enjoyed, yet his mind was 
calm and peaceful ; and it was plainly perceptible, that 
earthly passions had died away, and that he was enjoy- 
ing sweet foretastes of that rest into which he was so soon 
to enter. He would often say to me, " My meditations 
are very sweet, though my mind seems as much weakened 
as my body. I have not had that liveliness of feeling, 
which I have sometimes enjoyed, owing to my great 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



231 



weakness, but I shall soon be released from shackles, 
and be where I can praise God continually, without 
weariness. My thoughts delight to dwell on these words, 
There is no night there.' 9 

I felt that the time of separation was fast approach- 
ing, and said to him, " My dear, I have one request to 
make ; it is, that you would pray much for George, du- 
ring your few remaining days. I shall soon be left 
alone, almost the only one on earth to pray for him, and 
I have great confidence in your dying prayers/ ' He 
looked earnestly at the little boy, and said, " I will try 
to pray for him ; but I trust very many prayers will as- 
cend for the dear child from our friends at home, who 
will be induced to supplicate the more earnestly for him, 
when they hear that he is left fatherless in a heathen 
land/' 

On Wednesday, while looking in the glass, he seemed 
at once to see symptoms of his approaching dissolution, 
and said, without emotion, u I have altered greatly — I 
am sinking into the grave very fast — just on the verge." 
Mr. Mason said to him, "Is there nothing we can do for 
you ? Had we not better call the physician ? or shall 
we try to remove you into town immediately ?" After 
a few moments' deliberation, it was concluded to defer 
the baptism of the male applicants, and set out for home 
early the next morning. Nearly all the female canhi- 
dates had been examined, and as it is difficult for them 
to come to town, it was thought best that Mr. Mason 
should baptize them in the evening. We knelt, and Mr. 
Mason having prayed for a blessing on the decision, we 
sat down to breakfast with sorrowful hearts. 



232 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



While we were at the table, my beloved husband said, 
" I shall soon be thrown away for this world ; but ] hope 
the Lord Jesus will take me up. That merciful I eing. 
who is represented as passing by, and having compassion 
on the poor cast out infant, will not suffer me to perish. 
Oh ! I have no hope but in the wonderful, condescending, 
infinite mercy of God, through his dear Son. I cast my 
poor, perishing soul, loaded with sin, as it is, upon his 
compassionate arms, assured that all will be for ever 
safe." On seeing my tears, he said, " Are you not re- 
conciled to the will of God, my love?" When I told 
him I hoped I did not feel unreconciled, he continued, 
" I have long ago, and many times committed you and 
our little one into the hands of our covenant God. He 
is the husband of the widow and the father of the fa- 
therless. Leave thy fatherless children, I will preserve 
them alive ; and let thy widows trust in me, saith the 
Lord. He will be your stay and support, when I am 
gone. The separation will be but short. Oh, how happy 
I shall be to welcome you to heaven !" He then ad- 
dressed Mr. Mason, as follows : " Brother, I am heartily 
rejoiced, and bless God that you have arrived, and espe- 
cially am I gratified, that you are so much interested for 
the poor Karens. You will, I am assured, watch over 
them, and take care of them ; and if some of them turn 
back, you will still care for them. As to my dear wife 
and child, I know you will do all in your power to make 
them comfortable. Mrs. B. will probably spend the en- 
suing rains in Tavoy. She will be happy with you and 
Mrs. Mason ; that is, as happy as she can be in her 
Btate of loneliness. She will mourn for me, and a wid- 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



233 



ow's state is desolate and sorrowful at best. But God will 
be infinitely better to her than I have ever been." On the 
same day, he wished me to read some hymns on affliction, 
sickness, death, &c. I took Wesley's Hymn Book, the only 
one we had with us, and read several, among others, the 
one beginning, " Ah, lovely appearance of death !" 

On Wednesday evening, thirty-four persons were bap- 
tized. Mr. Boardman was carried to the water side, 
though so weak that he could hardly breathe without the 
continual use of the fan and the smelling-bottle. The 
joyful sight was almost too much for his feeble frame. 
When we reached the chapel, he said he would like to 
sit up and take tea with us. We placed his cot near the 
table, and having bolstered him up, we took tea together. 
He asked the blessing, and did it with his right hand 
upraised, and in a tone that struck me to the heart. It 
was the same tremulous, yet urgent, and I had almost 
said, unearthly voice, with which my aged grandfather 
used to pray. We now began to notice that brightening 
of the mental faculties, which I had heard spoken of, in 
persons near their end. 

After tea was removed, all the disciples present, about 
fifty in number, gathered around him, and he addressed 
them for a few moments in language like the following: 
u I did hope to stay with you till after Lord's day, and 
administer to you once more, the Lord's Supper. But 
G-od is calling me away from you. I am about to die, 
and shall soon be inconceivably happy in heaven. When 
I am gone, remember what I have taught you ; and, oh, 
be careful to persevere unto the end, that when you die, 
we may meet one another in the presence of God, never 



234 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



more to part. Listen to the word of the new teacher 

and the teacheress as you have done to mine. The 
teacheress will be very much distressed. Strive to 
lighten her burdens, and comfort her by your good con- 
duct. Do not neglect prayer. The eternal God, to 
whom you pray, is unchangeable. Earthly teachers sicken 
and die, but God remaineth for ever the same. Love 
Jesus Christ with all your hearts, and you will be for 
ever safe." This address I gathered from the Karens, 
as I was absent preparing his things for the night. 
Having rested a few minutes, he offered a short prayer, 
and then, with Mr. Mason's assistance, distributed tracts 
and portions of Scripture to them all. Early the next 
morning, we left for home, accompanied by nearly all 
the males, and some of the females, the remainder re- 
turning to their homes in the wilderness. Mr. Boardman 
was free from pain during the day, and there was no un- 
favorable change, except that his mouth grew sore. But 
at four o'clock in the afternoon, we were overtaken by 
a violent shower of rain, accompanied by lightning and 
thunder. There was no house in sight, and we were 
obliged to remain in the open air, exposed to the merci- 
less storm. We covered him with mats and blankets, and 
held our umbrellas over him, all to no purpose. I was 
obliged to stand and see the storm beating upon him, till 
his mattress and pillows were drenched with rain. We 
hastened on, and soon came to a Tavoy house. The in- 
habitants at first refused us admittance, and we ran for 
shelter into the out-houses. The shed I happened to 
enter, proved to be the " house of their gods," and thus 
I committed an almost unpardonable offence. After some 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON 



235 



persuasion, they admitted us into the house, or rather 
verandah, for they would not allow us to sleep inside, 
though I begged the privilege for my sick husband with 
tears. In ordinary cases, perhaps, they would have been 
hospitable; but they knew that Mr. Boardman was a 
teacher of a foreign religion, and that the Karens in our 
company had embraced that religion. 

At evening worship, Mr. Boardman requested Mr. 
Mason to read the thirty-fourth Psalm. He seemed al- 
most spent, and said, " This poor perishing dust will 
soon be laid in the grave ; but God can employ other 
lumps of clay to perform his will, as easily as he has 
this poor unworthy one." I told him, I should like to 
sit up and watch by him, but he objected, and said in a 
tender supplicating tone, " Cannot we sleep together ?" 
The rain still continued, and his cot was wet, so that he 
was obliged to lie on the bamboo floor. Having found a 
place where our little boy could sleep without danger of 
falling through openings in the floor, I threw myself 
down, without undressing, beside my beloved husband. 
I spoke to him often during the night, and he said he felt- 
well, excepting an uncomfortable feeling in his mouth 
and throat. This was somewhat relieved by frequent 
washings with cold water. Miserably wretched as his 
situation was, he did not complain ; on the contrary, his 
heart seemed overflowing with gratitude. "Oh!" said 
he, " how kind and good our Father in heaven is to me ; 
how many are racked with pain, while I, though near 
the grave, am almost free from distress of body. 1 
suffer nothing, nothing to what you, my dear Sarah, had 
to endure last year, when I thought I must lose you. 



236 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



And then I have you to move me so tenderly. I should 
have sunk into the grave ere this, but for your assiduous 
attention. And brother Mason is as kind to me as if he 
were my own brother. And then how many, in addition 
to pain of body, have anguish of soul, while my mind is 
sweetly stayed on God !" On my saying, " I hope we 
shall be at home to-morrow night, where you can lie on 
your comfortable bed, and I can nurse you as I wish," 
he said, " I want nothing that the world can afford, but 
my wife and friends ; earthly conveniences and comforts 
are of little consequence to one so near heaven. I only 
want them for your sake." In the morning we thought 
him a little better, though I perceived, when I gave him his 
sago, that his breath was very short. He, however took 
rather more nourishment than usual, and spoke about the 
manner of his conveyance home. We ascertained that 
by waiting until twelve o'clock, we could go the greater 
part of the way by water. 

At about nine o'clock, his hands and feet grew cold, 
and the affectionate Karens rubbed them all the forenoon, 
excepting a few moments when he requested to be left 
alone. At ten o'clock, he was much distressed for breath, 
and I thought the long dreaded moment had arrived. I 
asked him, if he felt as if he was going home, — " Not 
just yet," he replied. On giving him a little wine and 
water, he revived. Shortly after, he said, " You were 
alarmed without cause, just now, dear — I know the reason 
of the distress I felt, but am too weak to explain it to 
you." In a few moments he said to me, " Since you 
spoke to me about George, I have prayed for him almost 
incessantly — more than in all my life before." 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



237 



It drew near twelve, the time for us to go to the boat. 
We were distressed at the thought of removing him, when 
evidently so near the last struggle, though we did not 
think it so near as it really was. But there was no al- 
ternative. The chilling frown of the iron-faced Tavo- 
yan was to us as if he was continually saying, " Be 
gone." I wanted a little broth for my expiring husband, 
but on asking them for a fowl they said they had none, 
though at that instant, on glancing my eye through an 
opening in the floor, I saw three or four under the house. 
My heart was well nigh breaking. 

We hastened to the boat, which was only a few steps 
from the house. The Karens carried Mr. Boardman 
first, and as the shore was muddy, I was obliged to wait 
till they could return for me. They took me immediate- 
ly to him ; but oh, the agony of my soul, when I saw the 
hand of death was on him ! He was looking me full in 
the face, but his eyes were changed, not dimmed, but 
brightened, and the pupils so dilated, that I feared he 
could not see me. I spoke to him — kissed him — but he 
made no return, though I fancied that he tried to move 
his lips. I pressed his hand, knowing that if he could, 
he would return the pressure ; but, alas ! for the first 
time, he was insensible to my love, and forever. I had 
brought a glass of wine and water already mixed, and a 
smelling-bottle, but neither was of any avail to him now. 
Agreeably to a previous request, I called the faithful Ka- 
rens, who loved him so much, and whom he had loved 
unto death, to come and watch his last gentle breathings, 
for there was no struggle. 

Never, my dear parents, did one of our poor fallen 



238 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



race have less to contend with, in the last enemy. Little 
George was brought to see his dying father, but he was 
too young to know there was cause for grief. When 
Sarah died, her father said to George, " Poor little boy ; 
you will not know to-morrow what you have lost to-day." 
A deep pang rent my bosom at the recollection of this, 
and a still deeper one succeeded when the thought struck 
me, that though my little boy may not know to-morrow 
what he has lost to-day, yet when years have rolled by, 
and he shall have felt the unkindness of a deceitful, sel- 
fish world, he will know. 

Mr. Mason wept, and the sorrowing Karens knelt 
down in prayer to God — that God, of whom their ex- 
piring teacher had taught them — that God, into whose 
presence the emancipated spirit was just entering — that 
God with whom they hope and expect to be happy for- 
ever. My own feelings I will not attempt to describe. 
You may have some faint idea of them, when you recol- 
lect what he was to me, how tenderly I loved him, and at 
the same time, bear in mind the precious promises to the 
afHicted. 

We came in silence down the river, and landed about 
three miles from our house. The Karens placed his pre- 
cious remains on his little bed, and with feelings which 
you can better imagine than I describe, we proceeded 
homewards. The mournful intelligence had reached 
town before us, and we were soon met by Moung Ing, the 
Burman preacher. At the sight of us, he burst into a 
flood of tears. Next, we met the two native Christian 
sisters, who lived with us. But the moment of most 
bitter anguish was yet to come on our arrival at the 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



239 



house. They took him into the sleeping room, and when 
I uncovered his face, for a few moments, nothing was 
heard but reiterated sobs. He had not altered — the 
same sweet smile, with which he was wont to welcome me, 
sat on his countenance. His eyes had opened in bring- 
ing him, and all present seemed expecting to hear his 
voice ; when the thought, that it was silent forever, rushed 
upon us, and filled us with anguish sudden and unutterable. 
There were the Burman Christians, who had listened so 
long, with edification and delight, to his preaching — there 
were the Karens, who looked to him as their guide, their 
earthly all — there were the scholars whom he had taught 
the way to heaven, and the Christian sisters, whose privi- 
lege it had been to wash, as it were, his feet. 

Early next morning, his funeral was attended, and 
all the Europeans in the place, with many natives, were 
present. It may be some consolation to you to know 
that everything was performed in a decent manner, as if 
he had been buried in our own dear native land. By his 
own request, he was interred on the south side of our 
darling first-born. It is a pleasant circumstance to me, 
that they sleep side by side. But it is infinitely more 
consoling to think, that their glorified spirits have met 
in that blissful world, where sin and death never enter, 
and sorrow is unknown. 

Praying that w T e may be abundantly prepared to en- 
ter into our glorious rest, I remain, my dear parents, 
your deeply afflicted, but most affectionate child, 

Sarah H. Boardman. 



240 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

THE WIDOW MISSIONARY. 

Mrs. Boardman, thus left alone in the land where her 
whole married life had been passed, turned with a yearn- 
ing heart to the home of her childhood. She had her 
little son, the only surviving one of the little family, and 
she knew how gladly her friends in America would wel- 
come the widow and fatherless. Yet there lay around 
her a vast field for usefulness. With earnest, humble 
prayer, she implored to be directed aright in her de- 
cisions, and, conquering the home-sick longings to see 
dear, familiar faces once more, she resolved to remain in 
India, to pursue the task left by her husband, to strive 
to call souls to an eternal home. 

It required a heroism of the most exalted nature to 
form this resolution. By nature timid and retiring, en- 
feebled in health, widowed, heart-stricken by the loss of 
the loved ones who could brighten even her Indian home, 
she could stifle all her earnest longings for home sympa- 
thy, to take up the banner under whose folds her hus- 
band had died, fighting for the name of the Saviour. 

She writes : 

" When I first stood by the grave of my husband, I 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



241 



thought that I must go home with George. But these 
poor, inquiring, and Christian Karens, and the school- 
boys, and the Burmese Christians, would then be left 
without any one to instruct them ; and the poor, stupid 
Tavoyans would go on in the road to death, with no one 
to warn them of their danger. How then, oh ! how can 
I go ? We shall not be separated long. A few more 
years, and we shall all meet in yonder blissful world, 
whither those we love have gone before us." "I feel 
thankful that I was allowed to come to this heathen land. 
Oh, it is a precious privilege to tell idolaters of the gos- 
pel ! and when we see them disposed to love the Saviour 
we forget all our privations and dangers. My beloved 
husband wore out his life in this glorious cause ; and 
that remembrance makes me more than ever attached to 
the work, and the people for whose salvation he labored 
till death." 

She accordingly re-opened her school, held prayer- 
meetings with the Karen women, instructed the Tavoy- 
ans, and all this was done so quietly, with so unostenta- 
tious a spirit, that never had she appeared so lovely, so 
truly feminine, as when she was fighting in her husband's 
armor, for the Lord's name, in a heathen land. 

The day-schools which she taught, in addition to the 
pupils residing with her, were under the care of govern- 
ment, and supported by the Honorable Company. It 
was at that time against the will of the Company to have 
Christianity taught in the schools, and this fact gave oc- 
casion for the following letter, which exemplifies Mrs. 
Boardman's firmness and the true missionary spirit in 
trhieh she labored : 
16 



242 



LIEE OF SARAH B. JUDSOff. 



Tavoy, Aug. 24, 1833. 

My Dear Sir : 

Mr. Mason has handed me, for perusal, the extract from 
your letter to government, which you kindly sent him. I 
apprehend I have hitherto had wrong impressions, in re- 
ference to the ground on which the Honorable Company 
patronize schools in their territories ; and I hope you 
will allow me to say that it would not accord with my 
feelings and sentiments to banish religious instruction 
from the schools under my care. I think it desirable for 
the rising generation of this province to become ac- 
quainted with useful science ; and the male part of the 
population with the English language. But it is infi- 
nitely more important that they receive into their hearts 
our holy religion, which is the source of so much happi- 
ness in this state, and imparts the hope of a glorious im- 
mortality in the world to come. Parents and guardians 
must know that there is more or less danger of their 
children deserting the faith of their ancestors, if placed 
under the care of a Foreign Missionary ; and the exam- 
ple of some of the pupils is calculated to increase such 
apprehensions. Mr. Boardman baptized into the Chris- 
tian religion several of his scholars. One of the number 
is now a devoted preacher ; and, notwithstanding the 
decease of their beloved and revered teacher, they all, 
with one unhappy exception, remain firm in the Christian 
faith. 

The success of the Hindoo College, where religious in- 
struction was interdicted, may, perhaps, be urged in 
favor of pursuing a similar course in schools here. But 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



243 



it strikes me that the case is different here, even admit- 
ting their course to be right. The overthrow of a system 
bo replete with cruel and impure rites, as the Hindoo, or 
so degrading as the Mahometan, might be matter of joy, 
though no better religion w r ere introduced in its stead. 
But the Burman system of morality is superior to that 
of the nations around them, and to the heathen of an- 
cient times, and is surpassed only by the divine precepts 
of our blessed Saviour. Like all other merely human 
institutions, it is destitute of saving power ; but its in- 
fluence on the people, so far as it is felt, is salutary, and 
their moral character will, I should think, bear a com- 
parison with that of any heathen nation in the world. 
The person who should spend his days in teaching them 
mere human science, (though he might undermine their 
false tenets,) by neglecting to set before them brighter 
hopes and purer principles, would, I imagine, live to very 
little purpose. For myself, sure I am, I should at last 
suffer the overwhelming conviction of having labored in 
vain. 

With this view of things, you will not, my dear sir, be 
surprised at my saying it is impossible for me to pursue 
a course so utterly repugnant to my feelings, and so con- 
trary to my judgment, as to banish religious instruction 
from the schools in my charge. It is what I am confi 
dent you yourself would not wish ; but I infer from a 
remark in your letter that such are the terms on which 
government affords patronage. It would be wrong to 
deceive the patrons of the schools ; and if my supposition 
is correct, I can do no otherwise than request that the 
monthly allowance be withdrawn. It will assist in es- 



244 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



tablishing schools at Maulmain, on a plan more consonant 
with the wishes of government than mine has ever been. 
Meanwhile, 1 trust, I shall be able to represent the claims 
of my pupils in such a manner as to obtain support and 
countenance from those who would wish the children to 
be taught the principles of the Christian faith. 
Allow me, my dear sir, to subscribe myself, 
Yours, most respectfully, 

Sarah H. Boardman. 

The following answer was returned : 

My Dear Madam : 

I cannot do otherwise than honor and respect the sen- 
timents conveyed in your letter, now received. You will, 
I hope, give me credit for sincerity, when I assure you 
that in alluding to the system of instruction pursued by 
you, it has ever been a source of pride to me to point 
out the quiet way in which your scholars have been made 
acquainted with the Christian religion. My own govern- 
ment in no way proscribes the teaching of Christianity. 
The observations in my official letter are intended to 
support what I have before brought to the notice of gov- 
ernment, that all are received, who present themselves 
for instruction at your schools, without any stipulation 
as to their becoming members of the Christian faith. 

I cannot express to you how much your letter has dis- 
tressed me. It has been a subject of consideration with 
me, for some months past, how I could best succeed in es- 
tablishing a college here, the scholars of which were to 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



245 



have been instructed on the same system which you have 
so successfully pursued. Believe me, 

Yours very faithfully, 

A. D. Maingy. 

Afterwards government made an appropriation for 
schools " to be conducted on the plan of Mrs. Board- 
man's schools at Tavoy." 

The love for the Karens did not die away from Mrs. 
Boardman's heart after her husband's death. She, 
woman, and delicate, actually made the same tours to 
their homes as he had been accustomed to make, carry- 
ing with her words of holy truth to their inquiring minds, 
facing every hardship and danger in the one great cause. 

I quote from Fanny Forrester's life of Mrs. Judson 
the following account of one of her journeys to the 
Karens : — 

" A single anecdote is related by Captain F , a 

British officer, stationed at Tavoy ; and he used to dwel 1 
with much unction on the lovely apparition, which once 
greeted him among those wild, dreary mountains. He 
had left Tavoy, accompanied by a few followers, I think 
on a hunting expedition, and had strolled far into the 
jungle. The heavy rains, which deluge this country in 
the summer, had not yet commenced ; but they were near 
at hs.nd, and during the night had sent an earnest of 
their coming, which was anything but agreeable. All 
along his path hung the dripping trailers, and beneath 
his feet were the roots of vegetables, half-bared, and half- 
imbedded in mud ; while the dark clouds, with the rah? 
almost incessantly pouring from them, and the crazy 



246 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



clusters of bamboo huts, which appeared here and there 
in the gloomy waste, and were honored by the name of 
village, made up a scene of desolation absolutely inde- 
scribable. A heavy shower coming up as he approached 
a zayat by the way-side, and far from even one of those 
primitive villages, he hastily took refuge beneath the 
roof. Here, in no very good humor with the world, es- 
pecially Asiatic jungles and tropic rains, he sulkily 
' whistled for want of thought/ and employed his eyes 
in watching the preparations for his breakfast. 

" 4 Uh ! what wretched corners the world has, hidden 
beyond its oceans and behind its trees !' 

" Just as he had made this sage mental reflection, he 
was startled by the vision of a fair, smiling face in front 
of the zayat, the property of a dripping figure, which 
seemed to his surprised imagination to have stepped that 
moment from the clouds. But the party of wild Karen 
followers, which gathered round her, had a very human 
air ; and the slight burdens they bore, spoke of human 
wants and human cares. The lady seemed as much sur- 
prised as himself ; but she curtsied with ready grace as 
she made some pleasant remark in English ; and then 
turned to retire. Here was a dilemma. He could not 
suffer the lady to go out into the rain, but — his miserable 
accommodations, and still more miserable breakfast ! 
He hesitated and stammered ; but her quick apprehension 
had taken in all at a glance, and she at once relieved 
him from his embarrassment. Mentioning her name and 
errand, she added, smiling, that the emergencies of the 
wilderness were not new to her ; and now she begged 
leave to put her own breakfast with his, and make up a 



IiXM OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



247 



pleasant morning party. Then beckoning to her Karens, 
she spoke a few unintelligible words, and disappeared 
under a low shed — a mouldering appendage of the zayat. 
She soon returned with the same sunny face, and in dry 
clothing; and very pleasant, indeed, was the interview 
between the pious officer and the lady-missionary. They 
were friends afterward ; and the circumstances of their 
first meeting proved a very charming reminiscence." 



248 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSOB. 



CHAPTER IX. 

MARRIAGE TO MR. JUDSON — DECLINING HEALTH — LITEB 
ARY LABORS— SEPARATION FROM HER SON. 

In 1834, April 10th, Mrs. Boardman married Mr. 
Judson. A warm attachment, founded upon mutual re- 
spect and esteem, had long existed between them, and, 
in her many trials, after her husband's death, Mr. Judson 
was a consoler and adviser on every occasion when he 
could be so. She wrote of him, after years of married 
life together : " He is a complete assemblage of all that 
a woman's heart could wish to love and honor." 

The years passed among the Karens had made con- 
verts capable and willing to instruct their less fortunate 
brethren ; and Mrs. Judson, still keeping up her love for 
them, and interest in their welfare, was ever ready, 
amidst her new duties, to advise or assist the laborers in 
the field she had left. In her new home, great changes 
had taken place. When she left her first home in Bur- 
mah, for Tavoy, in 1828, there was in Maulmain but 
one church, with but three native members. When she 
returned in 1834, there was one Burmese church, with 
one hundred members, and two Karen, containing, to- 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



249 



gether, about the same number. A year after her mar- 
riage, Mrs. Judson wrote to a friend : 

" I can truly say, that the mission cause, and mission- 
ary labor, are increasingly dear to me, every month of 
my life. I am now united with or*e, whose heavenly 
spirit and example is deeply calculated to make me 
more devoted to the cause than I have ever been be- 
fore. Oh, that I may profit by such precious advan- 
tages !" 

A government school, at Maulmain, was offered to her 
immediately upon her arrival ; but seeing before her new 
cares and duties, she declined the charge of it. 

Mrs. Judson now undertook a new duty. There were 
in Maulmain, a large number of people under the pro- 
tection of the British government, called by the Bur- 
mans, Takings, by the English, Peguans, who, in lan- 
guage, dress, everything but religious belief, were entirely 
distinct from the Burmese. A great interest was felt by 
Mr. Judson for these people, and Mrs. Judson soon 
shared it. She began immediately to study their lan- 
guage, and made much progress. 

Her time was indeed fully occupied. She had the 
entire charge of female prayer meetings in the church 
of which her husband was pastor ; she undertook cheer- 
fully the numerous duties of a pastor's wife, visiting the 
sick, cheering the sorrowful, praying with the erring, and 
instructing the ignorant. 

Soon after her arrival at Maulmain, her health again 
declined, and her old malady returned with fearful 
violence ; after many weeks of dangerous illness, her 
health slowly returned, and for many years continued 



250 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



good. She attributed this to regular exercise. I give 
the account in her own words : 

" When I first came up from Tavoy, I was thin and 
pale ; and though I called myself pretty well, I had no 
appetite for food, and was scarce able to walk half a mile. 
Soon after, I was called to endure a long and severe at- 
tack of illness, which brought me to the brink of the grave. 
I was never so low in any former illness, and the doctor 
who attended me, has since told me, that he had no hope 
of my recovery ; and that when he came to prescribe med- 
icine for me, it was more out of regard to the feelings of 
my husband, than from any prospect of its affording me re- 
lief. I lay confined to my bed, week after week, unable to 
move, except as Mr. Judson sometimes carried me in his 
arms from the bed to the couch for a change ; and even 
this once brought on a return of the disease, which very 
nearly cost me my life. * * I never shall forget the pre- 
cious seasons enjoyed on that sick bed. Little George 
will tell you about it, if you should ever see him. I 
think he will always remember some sweet conversations 
I had with him, on the state of his soul, at that time. 
Dear child ! his mind was very tender, and he would 
weep on account of his sins, and would kneel down and 
pray with all the fervor and simplicity of childhood. 
He used to read the Bible to me every day, and commit 
little hymns to memory by my bedside. * * It pleased 
my Heavenly Father to raise me up again, although I 
was for a long time very weak. As soon as I was able, 
I commenced riding on horseback, and used to take a 
long ride every morning before sunrise. After a patient 
trial, I found that riding improved my health, though 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



251 



many times I should have become discouraged, and given 
it up, but for the perseverance of my husband. After 
riding almost every day, for four or five months, I found 
my health so much improved, and gained strength so 
fast, that I began to think walking might be substituted. 
About this time, my nice little pony died, and we com- 
menced a regular system of exercise on foot, walking at 
a rapid pace, far over the hills beyond the town, before 
the sun was up, every morning. We have continued this 
perseveringly up to the present time; and, during 
these years, my health has been better than at any 
time previous, since my arrival in India; and my 
constitution seems to have undergone an entire reno- 
vation.' ' 

Her literary labors recommenced with returning health. 
During her residence in India, she translated Bunyan's 
Pilgrim's Progress, into Burmese ; translated from Bur- 
mese to Peguan, several tracts, a Life of Christ, which 
she had previously translated from English to Burmese, 
and the New Testament. 

Mrs. Judson now resolved to send her beloved son, 
George, the only one of Mr. Boardman's children, who 
survived his father, away from India. She knew that it 
was impossible, with her manifold duties, and the limited 
means of education within her reach, to make of her son 
such a man as she hoped for, one to fill his father's 
post in the land of the heathen. She writes, at this 
period : 

"After deliberation, accompanied with tears, and 
agony, and prayers, I came to the conviction that it was 
my duty to send away my only child, my darling George, 



252 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



and yesterday he bade me a long farewell. 0, my doai 
sister ! my heart is full, and I long to disburden it by 
writing you whole pages; but my eyes are rolling down 
with tears, and I can scarcely hold my pen. * * Oh ! I 
shall never forget his looks, as he stood by the door and 
gazed at me for the last time. His eyes were filling with 
tears, and his little face red with suppressed emotion. 
But he subdued his feelings, and it was not till he had 
turned away, and was going down the steps, that he burst 
into a flood of tears. I hurried to my room, and on my 
knees, with my whole heart, gave him up to God, and 
my bursting heart was comforted from above. I felt 
such a love to poor perishing souls, as made me willing 
to give up all, that I might aid in the work of bringing 
these wretched heathen to Christ. The love of God, 
manifested in sending his only begotten and well beloved 
Son, into this world, to die for our sins, touched my 
heart, and I felt satisfaction in laying upon the altar, my 
only son. My reason and judgment tell me that the 
good of my child requires that he should be sent to Ame- 
rica ; and this, of itself, would support me in some little 
degree ; but when I view it as a sacrifice, made for the 
sake of Jesus, it becomes a delightful privilege. I feel 
a great degree of confidence that George will be con- 
verted, and I cannot but hope he will one day return to 
Burmah, a missionary of the Cross, as his dear father 
was. * * His dear papa took him down to Amherst in 
a boat. He held him in his arms all the way ; and he says 
his conversation was very affectionate and intelligent. He 
saw his little bed prepared in the cabin, and everything 
as comfortable and pleasant as possible ; and then, as 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



253 



George expressed it, returned to 6 comfort mamma.' 
And much did I need comfort, for this is, in some respects, 
the severest trial I have ever met with." 

I quote one more letter, written after long years of 
separation from her son : 

My beloved George : 

The last letter which I received from America, 
respecting you, rejoiced my heart more than the 
reception of any letter before in my life. It was from 
Dr. Bolles, and contained the joyful intelligence of 
your hopeful conversion to God. Still I am not fully 
satisfied — I am longing to hear that you " daily grow 
in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour 
Jesus Christ." 

This is the fifteenth anniversary of your birth-day ; 
and I feel it to be — I had almost said, the most important 
period in your life. At least, it is very, very important, 
as on the turn which you now take, your course through 
life will probably depend. Oh, how comforting to my 
anxious heart is the thought, that you have decided on 
the most momentous of all subjects, and that you have 
decided right ; that you have determined to identify your- 
self with the people of God, by leading the life of an 
humble follower of the blessed Jesus ! Oh, how full of 
anguish would my soul be, now that you have arrived at 
this age, had I not a hope that you were a Christian ! 
Blessed be God ! I have this sweet, this cheering, this 
most consoling of all hopes, to sustain my heart when 
ready to sink, as it measures the distance between us, or 



254 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



looks back upon my long separation from you, my dar- 
ling, eldest son. Tears come to my eyes, and I am ready 
to throw aside my pen, and obey the strong impulse to 
weep, as I think of the endearments of your infancy, 
and the sweetness of your childhood, when your soft 
cheek was pressed to mine, and all your little griefs 
buried and forgotten in my bosom. I always think of 
you as the little, innocent, prattling boy you then were. 
I would fain ever think of you as such ; but the picture 
must change, and I must try to imagine you growing up 
to be a tall, young man. 

I said before, that it is an unspeakable joy to my 
heart that you are hopefully pious. Still, I am far from 
being free from anxiety on your account. There is, you 
know, a possibility of our being deceived. And even if 
we are able to say, as we doubtless may be, " I know that 
I have passed from death unto life," — yet the Christian's 
path is beset with snares and dangers. No doubt you 
have already had severe struggles with remaining sin in 
your heart. I feel strong and peculiar desires, that you 
become a truly conscientious prayerful, devoted Christian. 
Be not contented with possessing a mere hope in Christ, 
that He will pardon your sins and save you at last. 
Live with religion in daily exercise in your soul. Then 
you will — you must be happy. Can you resolve to de- 
vote your whole life to the service of your blessed Sa- 
viour? Do you really give Him your heart, and determine 
(with His assistance, which he will surely grant in answer 
to prayer) never to do, nor say, nor think anything con- 
trary to His holy will ? True religion, always in exercise, 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



2,V> 



affords the only certain retreat from the sorrows, and 
trials, and sins of this mortal state. 

"Draw nigh unto Gfod, and he will draw nigh unto 
you." 

" Pray without ceasing." 
" Watch unto prayer* 99 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



CHAPTER X. 

MR. JUDSON'S ILLNESS. 

Six years glided on peacefully after Mrs. Judson's 
marriage, each hour usefully employed, and every day 
cheered by the mutual love existing between herself and 
her husband. Children came to lighten their foreign 
home, little blue eyed blossoms, like their mother, to speak 
to the parents' hearts of little ones in their far distant 
country. But another trial came to the devoted mis- 
sionaries. Mr. Judson was taken, in 1839, with the first 
pulmonary attack, the forerunner of the fatal disease 
which, years later, terminated his career of usefulness. 

A sea voyage was absolutely necessary for his re- 
covery, and, it being impossible for Mrs. Judson to desert 
her home duties, he went alone. I quote one of his let- 
ters, and one of hers to show the warm love that existed 
between them, and the gentle, meek spirit with which 
she bore the trial of parting. She writes : 

" As soon as you left the house, I ran to your dress- 
ing-room, and watched you from the window. But you 
did not look up — oh, how I wished you would ! Then I 
hastened to the back verandah, and caught one last 
glimpse of you through the trees ; * * * and I gave 
vent to my feelings in a flood of tears. 



LIFE OF SARA! B. JUDSON. 



257 



" Then the children came around me, asking to go to 
the wharf, and the women looked their wishes ; and, 
though I said 6 no' to the little ones, I could not deny 
the others. After they were gone I took all three of 
our darlings into your own little room, told them why 
you had gone away, and asked Abby Ann and Adoniram 
if they wished me to ask Grod to take care of papa while 
he was gone. They said ' yes/ and so I put Elnathan 
down on the floor to play, and, kneeling beside the other 
two, committed you and ourselves to the care of our 
Heavenly Father.' ' 

He writes to her : 

ON BOARD THE SNIPE, BOUND TO CALCUTTA. 

February 21, 1839. 

My dear Love : 

I wrote you yesterday, by the pilot, and enclosed my 
letter, with one to brother Haswell. The afternoon we 
lay at anchor, outside the buoy ; and, though in the face 
of the sea breeze, my cough was rather troublesome all 
day and evening. Perhaps it was one of my bad days. 
I passed a poor night, a little sick from the motion of 
the vessel ; and this morning put on Dr. Richardson's 
pitch plaster, which my fellow-consumptive assures me 
is the best thing in the world. I have begun this letter 
more for my own amusement than yours ; for what can 
a poor invalid, in my circumstances, write, that will be 
interesting even to an affectionate wife ? 

We are now moving forward, with a light wind. The 
slower the better, I suppose, for me. How did you and 
the children pass the night, or rather, the two nights, 
17 



258 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



that we have been separated ? I think of you, and the 
house, and the chapel, and the compound, and all the 
scenes, and occupations, and endearments that are passed 
— passed, perhaps, never to return ; but they will return, 
if not in this world, yet in another, purified, exalted, 
when all this mortal shall be invested with immortality. 

February 22. Much better since last. Very little 
cough. Spent all the evening, till nine o'clock, on deck, 
without any inconvenience. Wished you were with me, 
basking under the clear moonlight, and inhaling the soft 
sea air. 

March 3, Sunday. Have not attempted to write since 
the last date, in consequence of the motion of the vessel, 
occasioned by a light cargo and a head wind. We are 
now steering north, and expect to reach the pilot ground 
in three or four days. My cough has almost left me. 
But there is a sorenss remaining which I feel particularly 
when the air is cold. I have taken off the plaster aud 
done with licorice. I am decidedly convalescent at sea. 
Whether my complaint will return on land, remains yet 
to be seen. If I continue to get better, I shall probably 
return in this vessel. I hope to hear from you by a 
steamer, as soon as I arrive in Calcutta. It seems an 
age since I left Maulmain. The entire change of scene, 
succeeding such a monotonous life as mine has been for 
several years, contributes to the illusion. I have found 
your beautiful braid of hair-; and I hunted for some 
further note or token, but in vain. Everything about 
me reminds me of your care and love. I feel that no 
wife ever deserved her husband's gratitude and love 
more than you. May God preserye you and the children 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



259 



until we meet again, or prepare me to bear whatever dis- 
tressing dispensation he may have decreed. 

March 5. Within a hundred miles of the pilot ground. 
No wind. I don't care how long we lie here. Yester- 
day I had a slight touch of cough, which I fancied was 
brought on by the vicinity to land. But perhaps not. 
I have written letters to your parents and to George, 
also to Comstock and Cutter, Dr. Anderson and Mr. 
Peck. 

Some months later Mrs. Judson writes to Dr. Judson's 
mother, thus : — 

MRS. SARAH JUDSON, TO DR. JUDSON'S MOTHER. 

Maulmain, October 30, 1839. 

My dear Mother : 

I have, during the past year, suffered deep anxiety 
and gloomy foreboding on account of my dear husband's 
health. But God has been merciful beyond our fears, 
and so far restored him that he was able to preach last 
Lord's-day, the first time for about ten months. His dis- 
course was short, and he spoke low. I felt exceedingly 
anxious respecting his making the attempt, but he has ex- 
perienced no ill effects from it as yet. How pleased you 
would have been to see the joy beaming from the coun- 
tenances of the dear native Christians, as they saw their 
beloved and revered pastor once more take the desk ! 
He applies himself very closely to study, though he is 
still far from well. He takes cold very easily, and still 
feels a slight uneasiness in the chest and left side. But 
he is so much better than he was, that I am comforted 



260 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



with the hope that he will soon be entirely restored to 
health. He is now revising the Scriptures for a second 
edition, quarto. They have already proceeded in print- 
ing as far as Psalms. He revises as they print, and 
often finds himself closely driven. But God gives him 
strength equal to his day. With much love to sister 
Abigail, I remain, my dear mother, 

Your affectionate daughter, 

Sarah Jupson. 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 261 



CHAPTER XI. 

A YEAR OF TRIAL. 

In the course of the ensuing year, another little son 
was added to the home circle, but it was a year of the 
most severe trial and suffering to all the little family. 

Two letters, written by Dr. Judson to his mother and 
sister, tell the sad story of sickness and death. He 
writes : 

TO HIS MOTHER AND SISTER. 

Serampore, July 24, 1841. 
Dear Mother and Sister : 

We have suffered a great deal of sickness since I wrote 
you last, in April. Wife was confined to her bed for a 
long time, and appeared to be in a decline. Abby Ann, 
Adoniram, and Henry became worse with chronic dys- 
entery, until the two eldest were, at different times, con- 
sidered past recovery. When they were very ill, no one 
could take care of them but me ; so that I was up every 
hour of the night, and sometimes scarcely lay down the 
whole night. The doctors then ordered us to sea, as the 
only means of saving life ; and all my brethren and 
friends were very urgent to have us go, though no one 



262 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



hardly hoped that we could all get on board ship alive. 
How I managed to break up housekeeping, and pack up, 
and get my sick family and all the things aboard, I can 
hardly tell, now it is passed. But it was done somehow, 
and the children were stowed away in a range of berths 
I had made on one side of the cabin, and wife on the 
other, while I occupied a movable cot between the parties. 
The motion of the vessel, and the sea air soon had a good 
effect on all the invalids ; I left off giving medicines, 
and they daily improved. We embarked on the 26th of 
June and arrived before Calcutta the 11th of July. But 
as soon as we came within the influence of the hot clim- 
ate of Bengal, we began to relapse ; and though we came 
up to this comparatively healthy place, and hired a nice, 
dry house, on the very bank of the river, at forty rupees 
a month, I soon began to despair of attaining any radical 
and permanent recovery by remaining here. While 
looking about, and considering what to do next, a pious 
captain called on us, with whom we had some acquaint- 
ance at Maulmain, whose vessel was going to the Isle of 
France, and thence to Maulmain ; and he made us such a 
kind proposal that we thought we could go the circuitous 
voyage at no more expense than we had calculated it 
would cost to return direct. We should then have the 
benefit of being at sea two months or more, and a few 
weeks' residence at the Isle of France, the most healthy 
part of the East. We expect to break up once more, 
and embark in the course of ten days. Thus we are 
tossed about when we would fain be at our work ; but 
God orders all things for the best. At present no one 
of the family is dangerously ill. Abby is much better; 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



2153 



Adoniram is considerably better, though he looks very 
thin and pale ; Henry is still very poorly ; their mother 
is sometimes better, sometimes worse. I dread going to 
sea next month, in the Bay of Bengal, it being a very 
dangerous month ; but there seems to be no alternative. 
May God preserve us safely, and give me the pleasure 
of writing you from Port Louis, the place, you may re- 
collect, to which I once repaired when driven away from 
Bengal, nearly thirty years ago. 

I should be glad to see your faces once more in the 
flesh, but it will probably never be. May God dwell in 
your house and your hearts ; may he bless you by day 
and by night, in body and in soul, in time and in eternity. 
Wife desires to be kindly remembered, and I remain, as 
ever. 

Your affectionate son and brother, 

A. Judson. 

Serampore, August 1, 1842. 
Dear Mother and Sister : 

I w T rote you on the 24th ultimo. Perhaps this letter 
will go by the same conveyance. Wife went down to 
Calcutta, for a few days, to do a little business, leaving 
the two younger children with me. On the 27th, dear 
little Henry's disorder took an unfavorable turn. He 
had derived less benefit from the voyage and change than 
the other children, being too young to have his mind en- 
gaged and diverted, which greatly contributes to bodily 
recovery ; and being considered less dangerously ill than 
the others, had, perhaps, less attention paid him than was 
desirable. His disorder had continued to hold on, though 



264 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JTJDSOIS. 



at times greatly mitigated. On the 28th he grew worse, 
and I wrote down for his mother, and in the evening 
began to despair of his life. On the 29th the doctor 
gave him up, and we ceased from giving him any more 
medicine, for he could keep none on his stomach a single 
minute ; and my only prayer was, that he might not die 
before his mother arrived. Oh, what heavy hours now 
passed ! She arrived with the other children in the night, 
about two o'clock, and sprang to the cradle of the little 
sufferer, and could not think that he was really in a dying 
state. I let her take her own way, and she contrived to 
give him a little wine and water, which, however, could 
be of no avail ; and when morning came, the marks of 
death on the countenance were too visible for even the 
unwilling mother to refuse to acknowledge. We spent 
the day hanging over our dying babe, and giving him 
some liquid, for which he was always calling, to relieve 
his burning thirst. When I said, " Henry, my son/' 
he would raise his sinking eyelids, and try to stretchout 
his little arms for me to take him ; but he could not bear 
to be held more than a moment before he would cry to be 
laid down again. Oh, how restless did he spend his last 
day, rolling from side to side, and crying out, " Nahnee" 
his imperfect pronunciation of naughty, by which term 
he was in the habit of expressing his disapprobation or 
dissatisfaction. In the afternoon he became convulsed 
for a few moments, and our hearts were rent to witness 
the distortion of his dear little mouth and face. After 
that he was more quiet ; but towards evening he probably 
had some violent stroke of death, for he suddenly 
screamed out in great pain. In the evening he had an- 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



265 



other turn of convulsion. His mother lay down by his 
side, and, worn out with fatigue, fell fast asleep. About 
nine o'clock I had gone into another room, and was ly- 
ing down, when a servant called me. He began to 
breathe loud, indicative of the closing scene. I let the 
mother sleep — sat down by his side, and, presently called, 
as usual, " Henry, my son ;" upon which he opened his 
eyes, and looked at me more intelligently and affection 
ately than he had been able to do for some time ; but the 
effort was too great, and he ceased to breathe. I in- 
stantly awoke his mother ; he then gave two or three ex- 
piring gasps, and it was all over. I stripped the little 
entanciated body, and washed it, while his mother, with 
the help of a servant, made a suitable gown ; and by 
eleven o'clock he was laid out in the same cradle in which 
he died. For a few days, Elnathan had been ill with a 
severe cough and fever, and my attention had been di- 
vided between the two. After poor Henry was quiet, we 
turned all our attention to the others. The two elder 
children were much better. Next morning we had a 
coffin made, in which we placed our dear child ; and some- 
times, when our avocations permitted, looked at him 
through the day. And Oh, how sweet was his dead face ! 
though there was an expression of pain lurking in some 
of the features. At night, a few of our friends came to- 
gether, and we carried the coffin to the mission burial 
ground, w r here, after a prayer by Mr. Mack, the body 
was deposited in its final resting-place. Farewell, my 
darling son Henry. While thy little body rests in the 
grave, I trust that thy spirit, through the grace of Jesus 
Christ, is resting in paradise. We intend to order a small 



266 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



monument erected with this inscription : " The grave of 
Henry Judson, youngest son of the Rev. A. Judson, of 
Maulmain, who died July 30th, 1841, aged one year and 
seven months." 

Elnathan was very ill last night, and is not much bet- 
ter to-day. We tremble for him. The vessel in which 
we are going to the Isle of France, we hear, is to remain 
a few days longer, so that I will add a further line be- 
fore leaving. 

Calcutta, August 6th. We have come down to this place 
with a view to embarking ; but the vessel is still detained. 
Elnathan appears to be very ill, with a complication 
of complaints. We are in great distress about him. 
The two elder children continue better. 

In haste, yours affectionately, 

A. Judson. 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



267 



CHAPTER XII. 

MR. AND MRS. JUDSON, AND CHILDREN LEAVE INDIA- 
DEATH OF MRS. JUDSON. 

A SEA voyage proving beneficial to the other sufferers, 
they returned in November, 1841, to Maulmain, where 
Mrs. Judson again commenced her daily round of duties, 
translating, teaching, advising, and the thousand minor 
cares devolving upon her as a missionary's wife, and the 
mother of young children. In 1844, another child was 
added to the little flock, and from the time of its birth, 
Mrs. Judson's health declined rapidly. The disease 
which had so often threatened her life in former years, 
returned with great violence, and day after day saw her 
growing weaker. A sea voyage was at length pro- 
nounced the only means of protracting her life, and as 
she was too weak and helpless to go alone, Dr. Judson 
resolved to accompany her. 

Leaving the three youngest children with their mis- 
sionary friends in India, they embarked with the other 
three in the ship Paragon, for England, in April, 1845. 
On the fifth of July following, they arrived at Port 
Louis, Isle of France. Here, Mrs. Judson's health 
seemed so much improved, that it was thought prudent 



268 



LIFE OF SAKAH B. JUDSON. 



for her to proceed alone upon her voyage, and Dr. Jud- 
son determined to return to Maulmain. It was with 
many prayers for strength to bear the separation, that 
this resolution was taken. Mrs. Judson's last written 
words were penned with this trial in prospect. I give 
her touching poem, entire : 



We part on this green islet, Love, 

Thou for the Eastern main, 
I, for the setting sun, love — 

Oh, when to meet again ? 

My heart is sad for thee, Love, 

For lone thy way will be ; 
And oft thy tears will fall, Love, 

For thy children and for me. 

The music of thy daughter's voice 
Thou' It miss for many a year ; 

And the merry shout of thine elder boys, 
Thou'lt list in vain to hear. 

When we knelt to see our Henry die, 
And heard his last faint moan, 

Each wiped away the other's tears — 
Now, each must weep alone. 

My tears fall fast for thee, Love, — 

How can I say farewell ? 
But go ; thy God be with thee, Love, 

Thy heart's deep grief to quell I 

Yet my spirit clings to thine, Love, 

Thy soul remains with me, 
And oft we'll hold communion sweet, 

O'er the dark and distant sea. 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



269 



And who can paint our mutual joy 

When, all our wanderings o'er, 
We both shall clasp our infants three, 

At home, on Burmah's shore 

But higher shall our raptures glow, 

On yon celestial plain, 
When the loved and parted here below 

Meet, ne'er to part again. 

Then gird thine armor on, Love, 

Nor faint thou by the way, 
Till Boodh shall fall, and Burmah's sons 

Shall own Messiah's sway. 

This cup, however, was permitted to pass from them. 
The Paragon left them at Port Louis ; but a few day3 
afterwards, Mrs. Judson's illness assumed again a most 
dangerous character, and it became impossible for her 
husband to leave her. Mr. Judson wrote, in an obituary 
notice, the following account of the last days of his 
beloved wife: 

" After her prostration at the Isle of France, where 
we spent three weeks, there remained but little expecta- 
tion of her recovery. Her hopes had long been fixed 
on the Rock of Ages, and she had been in the habit of 
contemplating death as neither distant nor undesirable. 
As it drew near, she remained perfectly tranquil. No 
shade of doubt, or fear, or anxiety ever passed over her 
inind. She had a prevailing preference to depart and be 
with Christ. 4 1 am longing to depart/ and 6 What can 
I want beside?' quoting the language of a familiar hymn, 
were the expressions which revealed the spiritual peace 
and joy of her mind ; yet, at times, the thought of her 



270 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



native land, to which she was approaching, after an 
absence of twenty years, and a longing desire to see 
once more her son George, her parents, and the friends 
of her youth, drew down her ascending soul, and con- 
strained her to say, ' I am in a strait betwixt two — let 
the will of God be done.' 

" In regard to her children, she ever manifested the 
most surprising composure and resignation, so much so 
that I was once induced to say, 'You seem to have for- 
gotten the little ones we have left behind/ 6 Can a mo- 
ther forget V she replied, and was unable to proceed. 
During her last days, she spent much time in praying 
for the early conversion of her children. May her liv- 
ing and her dying prayers draw down the blessing of 
God on their bereaved heads. 

" On our passage homeward, as the strength of Mrs. 
Judson gradually declined, I expected to be under the 
painful necessity of burying her in the sea. But it was 
so ordered by divine Providence, that, when the indica- 
tions of approaching death had become strongly marked, 
the ship came to anchor in the port of St. Helena. For 
three days she continued to sink rapidly, though her 
bodily sufferings were not very severe. Her mind 
became liable to wander ; but a single word was sufficient 
to recall and steady her recollection. On the evening 
of the 31st of August, she appeared to be drawing near 
to the end of her pilgrimage. The children took leave 
of her, and retired to rest. I sat alone by the side of 
her bed during the hours of the night, endeavoring to 
administer relief to the distressed body, and consolation 
to the departing soul. At two o'clock in the morning, 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUDSON. 



271 



wishing to obtain one more token of recognition, I roused 
her attention, and said, ' Do you still love the Saviour?' 
' Oh, yes/ she replied, 6 1 ever love the Lord Jesus 
Christ/ I said again, ' Do you still love me V She re- 
plied in the affirmative, by a peculiar expression of her 
own. 4 Then give me one more kiss and we exchanged 
that token of love for the last time. Another hour 
passed, life continued to recede, and she ceased to breathe. 
For a moment I traced her upward flight, and thought 
of the wonders which were opening to her view. I then 
closed her sightless eyes, dressed her, for the last time, 
in the drapery of death ; and being quite exhausted with 
many sleepless nights, I threw myself down and slept. 
On awaking in the morning, I saw the children standing 
and weeping around the body of their dear mother, then, 
for the first time, inattentive to their cries. In the 
course of the day, a coffin was procured from the shore, 
in which I placed all that remained of her whom I had 
so much loved ; and after a prayer had been offered by 
a dear brother minister from the town, the Rev. Mr. 
Bertram, we proceeded in boats to the shore. There we 
were met by the colonial chaplain, and accompanied to 
the burial ground by the adherents and friends of Mr. 
Bertram, and a large concourse of the inhabitants. 
They had prepared the grave in a beautiful, shady spot, 
contiguous to the grave of Mrs. Chater, a missionary 
from Ceylon, who had died in similar circumstances, on 
her passage home. There I saw her safely deposited, 
and in the language of prayer, which we had often pre- 
sented together at the throne of grace, I blessed God 
that her body had attained the repose of the grave, and 



272 



LIFE OF SARAH B. JUBSON. 



her spirit the repose of paradise. After the funeral, the 
dear friends of Mr. Bertram took me to their house 
and their hearts ; and their conversation and prayers 
afforded me unexpected relief and consolation. But I 
was obliged to hasten on board ship, and we immediately 
went to sea. On the following morning, no vestige of 
the island was discernible in the distant horizon. For a 
few days, in the solitude of my cabin, with my poor 
children crying around me, I could not help abandoning 
myself to heart-breaking sorrow. But the promises "of 
the gospel came to my aid, and faith stretched her view 
to the bright world of eternal life, and anticipated a 
happy meeting with those beloved beings whose bodies 
are mouldering at Amherst and St. Helena. 

" I exceedingly regret that there is no portrait of the 
second, as of the first Mrs. Judson. Her soft, blue eye, 
her mild aspect, her lovely face, and elegant form, have 
never been delineated on canvass. They must soon pass 
away from the memory even of her children, but they 
will remain for ever enshrined in her husband's heart. 

" To my friends at St. Helena, I am under great obli- 
gation. I desire to thank God for having raised up in 
that place a most precious religious interest. The friends 
of the Redeemer rallied round an evangelical minister 
immediately on his arrival, and within a few months, 
several souls were added to their number. Those dear, 
sympathizing, Christian friends received the body of the 
deceased from my hands as a sacred deposit, united with 
our kind captain, John Codman, Jr., of Dorchester, in 
defraying all the expenses of the funeral, and promised 
to take care of the grave, and see to the erection of the 



LIFE OP SARAH B. JUDSON. 



273 



gravestones which I am to forward, and on which I pro* 
pose to place the following inscription : 

" ' Sacred to the memory of Sarah B. Judson, mem- 
ber of the American Baptist Mission to Burmah, for- 
merly wife of the Rev. George D. Boardman, of Tavoy, 
and lately wife of the Rev. Adoniram Judson, of Maul- 
main, who died in this port, September 1st, 1845, on her 
passage to the United States, in the forty-second year 
of her age, and in the twenty-first of her missionary 
life. 

" i She sleeps sweetly here, on this rock of the ocean, 
Away from the home of her youth, 
And far from the land where, with heartfelt devotion, 
She scattered the bright beams of truth/ n 

After his wife's death, Mr. Judson continued his voy- 
age to the United States, where he paid a visit, marked 
throughout by the warmest welcome from his friends in 
this country, and where he left his three children to be 
educated, returning to India again in 1846, accompanied 
by the companion whose life will occupy the remaining 

pages of this work, 
18 



LIFE OF 



EMILY C. JUDSON, 

THIRD WIFE OF 

REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D.D. 



CHAPTER I. 

BIRTH — EARLY LIFE — LITERARY CAREER — MARRIAGE AND 
DEPARTURE FOR INDIA — FAREWELL TO ALDERBROOK. 

Emily Chubbuck, the third wife of Dr. Judson, was 
born at Eaton, New York, in 1818. After enjoying the 
means of education within her reach at a country town, 
and finding them insufficient to satisfy the cravings of 
a superior intellect and love of study, she accepted the 
situation of teacher, in the Female Seminary at Utica, 
New York, making it a pleasure to vary the duties of 
imparting instruction, by employing her leisure in study- 
ing closely herself. 

Her parents, themselves deeply impressed with the 
love of holy things, early trained their children to the 
love of God, and awoke in them the religious enthusiasm 
which distinguished Emily in her short but beautiful life. 
274 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



275 



When but fourteen years of age Emily made a profession 
of religion, and joined the Baptist church. 

Whilst occupied in teaching at Utica, Miss Chubbuck 
commenced her literary career, by writing poems for the 
Knickerbocker Magazine, and, also, both prose and 
poetical articles for the American Baptist Publication 
Society. These first productions were all distinguished 
by their high religious tone, and the clear, practical view 
* given to the highest teachings of religion. These earlier 
writings, written amidst the pressure of school duties and 
hard study, evince, in a remarkable degree, the high, 
pure tone of the young girl's mind, and were put mod- 
estly forth, with no hope of winning laurels. In 1844, 
hoping to add to the limited income of her mother by 
the fruits of her pen, Miss Chubbuck sent to the New 
Mirror, published by Messrs Morris and Willis, some 
lighter articles, stories and sketches. They were highly 
commended by the editors, accepted, and published, with 
the pretty, fanciful signature of "Fanny Forester." 
The encouragement lavished by the press, and the influ- 
ence of personal friends, decided Miss Chubbuck to give 
up teaching and make literature her profession. 

Two or three years of close, successful application to 
her pen, whilst it made the young aspirant for public 
favor, a well known, beloved name, proved too severe for 
a constitution naturally delicate, and " Fanny Forester" 
was forced to lay aside her profession, and seek change 
of air and scene. 

She accepted an invitation from the Rev. A. D. Gil- 
lette, a Baptist minister of high standing, in Philadel- 
phia, and passed the winter of 1845-6 in his family. 



276 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



During her early life in Eaton, Miss Chubbuck be- 
came warmly interested in the missionary cause, and ex- 
pressed freely her hope that at some future time Provi- 
dence would open a way for her to teach holy truths in 
heathen countries. Accepting, however, with patient 
love, any path of usefulness indicated as the one chosen 
for her by her Heavenly Father, she fulfilled the more 
humble cares of a daughter and teacher, bringing to her 
daily routine of duties the same gentle, pure heart, that 
so eminently fitted her for a missionary wife. 

Still the love for the missionary life, the hope of being 
useful to the far distant brethren, struggling in spiritual 
darkness, was the ruling passion of her life, and destined 
to be gratified. During her residence in the family of 
Dr. Gillette, Miss Chubbuck met the Rev. Dr. Judson, 
whose name she knew so well as the great Burman Mis- 
sionary. 

Dr. Judson was also visiting in the family of Dr. Gil- 
lette, and thus thrown into daily intercourse with the 
young authoress. His well-known nobility of character, 
his self-sacrificing love to the heathen, and his own 
gentle, benevolent manners, made the disparity of age 
valueless in the eyes of the warm-hearted woman, and 
when his love for her was declared, she accepted her 
place as his wife, the mother of his children, and his 
companion in his life-long task, in India. In June, 
1846, Miss Chubbuck became the wife of Dr. Judson, 
and sailed with him for India. 

"Fanny Forester" was leaving in America a name 
fast rising to the first literary ranks. Her sketches 
published in the New Miror had been collected in two 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 277 



volumes, under the title of Alderbrook,- and, in less than 
seven years, 33,000 copies of this work alone, were sold. 
Her other works, " Charles Linn/' " The Great Secret," 
"Allen Lucas," and her constant contributions to peri- 
odical literature were also very popular, yet she unhesi- 
tatingly consented to give up her prospects in America 
to accept the arduous life of a missionary's wife. In 
1846 she wrote the beautiful farewell to her native place, 
which I quote as a specimen of her pure, elevated style 
of writing, and the trustful hope, with which she left 
her dearly loved home to sail for the new home awaiting 
her: 

"farewell to alderbrook. 

"'Farewell: 

I may not dwell 
Mid flowers and music ever/ 

" The hours of my childhood have gone back to their 
old obliviousness in eternity ; youth is on the wing, flee- 
ing — fleeing — fleeing. There is but a narrow shadow 
lying between my foot and the grave which it seeks — a 
veil of grey mist, that a few to-days will dissolve into — 
what? — the sickening perfume of dead flowers, or in- 
cense grateful to heaven. 

" This is a beautiful, bright world, made for pure be- 
ings. At its birth angels walked among its cool shad- 
ows, bent to its bright waters, and inhaled its perfumes ; 
and they fled not, those holy ones, till their wings 
drooped beneath the defiling heaviness of sin. A false 
breath played upon the brow of man; heedlessly he 



278 LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



opened his bosom to it ; and then it at once nestled, a 
fatal poison, ever distilling venom. Still the flowers 
bloomed; still the waters flashed and sparkled in the 
warm light ; still the breezes waved their censers, laden 
with rich perfume; still the birds carolled; the stars 
smiled ; leaves rustled, kissing each other lovingly ; dews 
slumbered in lily bells and the hearts of roses, and crept 
around withering roots and revived fading petals ; the sun, 
and the moon, and the silver twilight, each wrought its 
own peculiar broidery on earth and sky ; but upon the 
flowers, and the fresh leaves, and the waters, and the 
breezes, the gay, beautiful birds, and the silent dews, on 
sun, and moon, and stars, on all, everything of earth, 
rested the taint of sin. In the morning of this little day of 
time, what more deliciously sweet than to recline among the 
blossoming luxuriance of Eden, and worship God, there, 
in his own temple? It was the object of life to enjoy 
its own blissfulness, and praise Him who gave it. But 
when, on the whisper of the tempter, sin came, it brought 
a change. The poison hid itself among all the beautiful 
things that we most love, engendering thorns and pro- 
ducing discord ; it festered in our hearts, reveled in our 
veins, and polluted our lips, until the angels veiled their 
faces in disgust, and man was left with no eye to pity, 
no arm to save ! Then, from the dense cloud, broke 
forth a ray of glory; a crowned Head looked out in 
pity ; divine lips bent to the poisoned wound ; and lost* 
ruined man found a Saviour. He was heralded by an- 
gels ; angels are still whispering, 6 Look ! look ! live !' 
that Saviour is standing with love-beaming eyes and 
arms extended ; but men are blind and cannot see his 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



279 



beauty. Shall I sit down among thy flowers, sweet Al- 
derbrook, while my Redeemer is dishonored, and my 
brethren the sons of those who walked with God in 
Eden, die ? 

" Faultless, if blinded ! — The just God will not be an- 
gry with those who, not knowing, have not loved him ! 
" Who has said it ? 

" Ah ! The invisible things of Him from the creation 
of the world are already seen, being understood by the 
things that are made, even his eternal power and Grod- 
head; so that they are without excuse. The beautiful page 
of hill and dale and sky is spread open to all. I go tc 
teach my brother how to read it. 

"Dear, beautiful Alderbrook ! I have loved thee as 
I shall never love any other thing, that I may not meet 
after the sun of Time is set. Every thing from the strong 
old tree that wrestles with the tempest, down to the amber 
moss-cup cradling the tiny insect at its root, and pebble 
sleeping at the bottom of the brook, — every thing about 
thee has been laden with its own peculiar lesson. Thou 
art a rare book, my Alderbrook, written all over by the 
Creator's finger. Dearly do I love the holy truths upon 
thy pages ; but 6 1 may not dwell, mid flowers and music 
ever/ and I go hence, bearing another, choicer book in my 
hand, and echoing the words of the angels, 6 Look ! look, 
live/ 

" I stand on the verge of the brook, which seems to 
me more beautiful than any other brook on earth, and 
take my last survey of the home of my infancy. The 
cloud, which has been hovering above the trees on the 
verge of heaven, opens ; a golden light gushes forth, 



280 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



bathing the hill-top, and streaming down its green declivi* 
ty even to my feet, and I accept the encouraging omen. 
The angel of Alderbrook, c the ministering spirit' sent 
hither by the Almighty, blesses me. Father in heaven, 
thy blessing, ere I go ! 

" Hopes full of glory, and oh, most sweetly sacred ! 
look out upon me from the future ; but, for a moment, 
their beauty is clouded. My heart is heavy with sorrow. 
The cup at my lip is very bitter. Heaven help me ! 
White hairs are bending in submissive grief, and age 
dimmed eyes are made dimmer by the gathering of tears. 
Young spirits have lost their joyousness, young lips for- 
get to smile, and bounding hearts and bounding feet are 
stilled. Oh, the rending of ties, knitted at the first 
opening of the infant eye, and strengthened by number- 
less acts of love, is a sorrowful thing ! To make the 
grave the only door to a meeting with those in whose bo- 
som we nestled, in whose hearts we trusted, long before 
we knew how precious was such love and trust, brings 
with it an overpowering weight of solemnity. But a 
grave is yawning for each one of us : and it is much to 
choose whether we sever the tie that binds us here to-day, 
or lie down on the morrow ? Oh, the ' weaver's shuttle' 
is flying ; the 4 flower of the grass' is withering ; the span is 
almost measured ; the tale nearly told ; the dark valley 
is close before us — tread we with care ! 

" My mother, we may neither of us close the other's dark- 
ened eye, and fold the cold hands upon the bosom ; we 
may neither of us watch the sod greening and withering 
above the other's ashes ; but there are duties for us even 
more <?acred than these. But a few steps, mother — dif- 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



281 



ficult the path may be, but very bright — and then we put 
on the robe of immortality, and meet to part never 
more.. And we shall not be apart even on earth. There 
is an electric chain passing from heart to heart through 
the throne of the Eternal ; and we may keep its links all 
brightly burnished by the breath of prayer. Still pray 
for me, mother, as in the days gone by. Thou bidst me 
go ! The smile comes again to thy lip, the light to thine 
eye, for thou hast pleasure in the sacrifice. Thy bless- 
ing ! Farewell, my mother, and ye loved ones of the 
same hearthstone. 

Bright, beautiful, dear Alderbrook, farewell, 

Fanny Forester. 

June 1st. 1846. 



282 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



CHAPTER II. 

ARRIVAL IN INDIA — LITERARY LABORS — POEM WRITTEN ON 
THE BIRTH OF A DAUGHTER DOMESTIC LIFE. 

In November 1846. Dr. and Mrs. Judson arrived at 
Maulmain ; and in February 1847, the little family went to 
Rangoon, Dr. Judson having gone there in the previous 
month, to make arrangements for the reception of his wife 
and children. Mrs. Judson had suffered with sea sickness 
during the voyage, but the climate of Rangoon seemed 
to agree with her very well. Of the three children left 
in India when Dr. Judson sailed for America, one, the 
youngest, had joined his mother in Heaven, the others 
were well. Dr. Judson wrote home: " I have set up house- 
keeping in my old house ; and it seems like home, not- 
withstanding the devasation that death and removal have 
made. Emily makes one of the best wives and kindest 
mothers to the children that ever man was blessed with." 

The removal referred to the three children who ac- 
companied Dr. Judson to America, and who remained 
there for education. 

Settled in her new home, with duties before her to- 
wards her husband and his children, " Fanny Forester," 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



283 



for a short season laid aside her pen, but the talents be- 
stowed by the Heavenly Father, were not intended to lie 
idle, and time was found for many touching sketches of 
the new home and life. She wrote the life of Sarah B. 
Judson, " The Olio, or Domestic Poems," " The Kathayan 
Slave, and other papers connected with missionary life," 
" My two Sisters, " during her residence in India, beside 
many poems and short sketches, sent home and published in 
periodicals. 

Through the winter months, after her arrival in Ran- 
goon, Mrs. Judson's health continued good, but in the 
summer of 1847 she was taken very ill, with a combina- 
tion of nervous complaints. Dr. Judson was also ill with 
dysentery at the same time. Two letters written by 
Dr. Judson at this time show the trials they were sub- 
jected to, at the same time that their cheerful, jesting 
tone speaks highly for his domestic happiness. 

TO MRS. STEVENS, OF MAULMAIN. 

Rangoon, June 30, 1847. 

Dear Sister : 

I have heard Mrs. Judson say, two or three times, 
that she ought to write to you ; so I thought I would 
supply her deficiency. She has been very ill, with a 
combination of nervous complaints, aud become u as thin 
as the shad that went up the Niagara." I was taken 
with dysentery two or three weeks ago, and had the 
hardest time that I ever knew since I have been in the 
mission. Henry lost his appetite and grew thin with 
fever. . . . And, in the midst of it, poor little Edward 
was seized with the erysipelas, and his eyes and face 



284 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



swellel so that he was not recognizable. At length 
several frightful sores opened, and are still discharging. 
Government troubles came thick upon us and the con- 
verts. The season of Lent arrived, and for four months 
no flesh or fowl — nothing but fish — is procurable, except 
by stealth, and at a great price. We had depended 
chiefly on fowl soup, and now it seemed as if we must 
die. However, we kept on breathing. . . . 

Only think that next July 11 will be the anniversary 
of our sailing from Boston, and I shall not then have re- 
ceived — except two short letters from Abby Ann, and 
ditto from Mr. Peck — a single communication from the 
thousands of warm friends I left at home ! 

Better sing " Vive/* &c, over the graves of friendship, 
and all things here below, except — except what? love ; 
and that we will cherish in the young corner of our 
hearts, an oasis in the desert. 

Yours, affectionately, 

A. JUDSON. 

TO MR. THOMAS S. RANNEY. 

Rangoon, July 21, 1847. 

My dear Brother : 

The accompanying heavy parcel for Colby, with the 
letter, is to go by the August steamer to Calcutta, with 
direction to be forwarded overland to the agent in 
London. The postage will, of course, be heavy ; but 
the thing is the property of the Board, and it is very 
important that it should reach home as soon as it can be 
conveyed by the overland. 

I received your kind letter of yesterday, the missing 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



285 



Herald, &c. We are all creeping up the valetudinarian 
hill with the utmost assiduity. We had the happiness 
of nabbing fifty fowls by the help of a government man 
in the neighborhood, whose favor we propitiated ; and to 
such a degree that he let us have them for seventy-two 
rupees per hundred. Three nights after we had cooped 
them, our friend's jackals, we know, stole twenty of them ; 
and soon after our friend himself borrowed eight more, 
because he let us have them so cheap, I suppose. The 
rest we are bolting as fast as possible, for fear he will 
want to borrow them too. By we, I mean I, for wife 
has become a sort of Grahamite, living chiefly, or vege- 
tating rather, on Mrs. Stevens's gingerbread, your coffee, 
and the scrapings of yams, which we pick up now and 
then — the article being now out of season. ye fre- 
quenters of Astor and Tremont ! ye shades of straw- 
berries and icecreams ! But I will spare your feelings 
and my own. May you be happy in devouring and be- 
ing devoured. I see you are getting up a school of 
shadows in Maulmain. Please tell the superioress that 
we are assiduously qualifying ourselves for an early ad- 
mission. 

I remain, that is, what does remain, 

Yours affectionately, 

A. JUDSON. 

Ill a letter to his daughter of a later date, he says : 
"We are a deliciously happy family. ,, 

On the 24th of December, 1847, Emily Frances, Mrs. 
Judson's little daughter, was born. The exquisite lines 



286 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



given below were written upon the birth of this child, 
and were very largely circulated in America : 

MY BIRD. 

" Ere last year's moon had left the sky 
A birdling sought my Indian nest, 
And folded, oh, so lovingly, 

Her tiny wings upon my breast ! 

From morn till evening's purple tinge 
In winsome helplessness she lies ; 

Two rose leaves, with a silken fringe, 
Shut softly on her starry eyes. 

There's not in Ind a lovelier bird ; 

Broad earth owns not a happier nest; 
God ! thou hast a fountain stirred 

Whose waters never more shall rest ! 

This beautiful, mysterious thing, 
This seeming visitant from heaven, 

This bird with the immortal wing, 
To me — to me, Thy hand has given ! 

The pulse first caught its tiny stroke, 
The blood its crimson hue, from mine 

This life, which I have dared invoke, 
Henceforth is parallel with Thine. 

A silent awe is in my room — 

I tremble with delicious fear ; 
The future, with its light and gloom, 

Time and eternity are here. 

Doubts — hopes, in eager tumult rise ; 

Hear, my God, one earnest prayer 
Room for my bird in paradise, 

And give her Angel plumage there, 
MAULMAIN, January, 18-18. 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



287 



Dr. and Mrs. Judson left Rangoon for Maulmain in 
1847. I quote here another letter from Dr. Judson, 
written in 1848, which, while it gives a brief account of 
the progress in missionary matters, also shows the hap- 
piness of Mrs. Judson's new life : 

TO MR. AND MRS. ROBARTS, OF PHILADELPHIA. 

Maulmain, December 18, 1848. 
My very dear Friends : 

Have I written you since the birth of little Emily 
Frances ? I was sure I had, until looking into my letter- 
book, I find not your name where I expected to see it. 
The little thing will be one year old on the 24th instant. 
She is a great pet of her brothers, Henry and Edward ; 
and her mother has taken to the twc boys as if they 
were her own, so that we are a very happy family ; not 
a happier, I am sure, on the broad earth. For a few 
months we have been occupying the same house that my 
late family occupied ; I have the same church and 
chapel ; I am sitting at the same study table ; and I can 
hardly realize that I have been through such a whirl ; 
that the strange American dream has intervened; that I 
am writing to certain persons of whom, before I had that 
dream, I had never heard, but whom I now have in my 
heart; and their house, and the way to the "publication 
office," and that office, and the Gillettes, and Philadel- 
phia, are all before my eye, as plain as if I saw them 
again ; and that cold winter, and your gas-lights, and 
little Mary rigged out to go to school through the snow 
— ah, the snow, that curious article, drifting in at the 
slightest opening of a window, and that broken pane that 



288 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



I bumped my unlucky head against, I see it, looking at 
me reproachfully. Oh, wouldn't I give something to be 
able to walk into your house, and spend a day or two 
with you once more ! But that can never be. I sup- 
pose that by this time you have our dear Utica friends 
with you in Philadelphia. I hope they will be appreci- 
ated ; and they will, I am sure, be a great accession to 
your society and church. Do write me, and tell me all 
about my friends in Philadelphia by name. I directed 
copies of the Memoir of the late Mrs. Judson to be sent 
you, and Mrs. Gillette, and Mary Anna Longstreth, and 
Mrs. President Dagg, all under cover to you, which I 
mention, because I find that copies, which I sent to 
friends, have, by some accident, failed of reaching their 
destination. 

The work of the Lord is going forward in every di- 
rection, though much slower than we desire. Scarcely 
a month elapses without witnessing the baptism of some 
Burmans, or Peguans, or Karens, or descendants of Eu- 
ropeans, in some of our churches in this place and vi- 
cinity. And beside the actual evident conversions, we 
believe that the truth is spreading, and gaining ground 
through the country ; and we expect to meet many in 
heaven, whom we never met on earth. And we are en- 
deavoring to labor, not only for the present generation, 
but for all future generations ; and for this purpose are 
preparing a great variety of elementary books in the 
various departments of science and religion. 

" Cheerly, cheerly ply the lever ; 
Pause not, faint not, falter never/' 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



289 



is our song, and in that chorus we all join, with joyful 
hearts. Even the " young romance writer" has made a 
little book, completing her predecessor's series of Scrip- 
ture Questions on the Historical Parts of the New Tes- 
tament ; and she manages to conduct a Bible class and 
native female prayer-meetings ; so that I hope she will 
yet come to some good. Pray for us, my dear friends ; 
and may we all be prepared to meet in heaven. With 
Mrs. Judson's love, 

Yours most affectionately, 

A. JUDSOHT. 

19 



290 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSCNe 



CHAPTER III. 

MRS. JUDSDN'S ILLNESS — DR. JUDSON's DEATH — MRS. JUIV 
SON'S RETURN TO AMERICA — DEATH — POEMS. 

Again, in 1849, Mrs. Judson's health sank unuer the 
trying effects of the Indian climate. Dr. Judson wrote 
to Miss Anable the following letter, showing the heavy 
grief under which he labored : 

TO MISS ANABLE, OF PHILADELPHIA. 

Maulmain, March 18, 1849. 

Dear Anna Maria : 

I know not how to begin to write you. A dark cloud 
is gathering around me. A crushing weight is upon me. 
I cannot resist the dreadful conviction that dear Emily 
is in a settled and rapid decline. Eor nearly a year 
after the birth of baby she enjoyed pretty good health, 
and I flattered myself that sho would be spared for many 
years. But three or four months ago her appetite almost 
entirely failed her. Soon after, baby was taken very 
ill, and in the midst of it, our usual help left us, and she 
was obliged to undergo a great deal of severe fatigue ; 
and I see now that she has been declining ever since. 
She soon became unable to take our usual walks, and I 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



291 



procured a pony for her, and she tried riding, but with- 
out any good effect. I next sent her to Tavoy in a 
steamer, on a visit to the missionaries there. She was 
gone ten days, and returned thinner in flesh and weaker 
than ever. I now take her out, every morning, in a 
chaise, and this is all the exercise she can bear. She is 
under the care of a very skillful doctor, who appears to 
be making every possible effort to save her; but the 
symptoms are such that I have scarcely any hope left. 
She is thinner than she has ever been ; strength almost 
gone ; no appetite ; various pains in the region of the 
lungs ; a dry cough, which has hung on pertinaciously 
for two or three months. She was preparing some 
"Notes," to append to the Memoir, but has been obliged 
to leave them unfinished, being unable to write, or even 
read, without aggravating her pains. I look around in 
despair. If a change to any place promised the least 
relief, I w r ould go anywhere. But we are here in the 
healthiest part of India, and in the dry, warm season ; 
and she suffers so much at sea that a voyage would hardly 
be recommended for itself. My only hope is that the 
doctor declares that her lungs are not seriously affected, 
and that as soon as her system is fairly brought under 
the influence of the course of medicine he is pursuing, 
— digitalis being a principal ingredient, — there will be a 
favorable result. I shall dissuade her from writing by 
this month's mail, though she has mentioned that she 
wants to write to you and her family. Nor does she 
know that I am writing to you. Her family I don't want 
to distress at present. She may get better. But I 
suffer so much myself that I felt it would be some relief 



292 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



to sit down and tell you all about it. . . . When she 
was at Tavoy she made up her mind that she must die 
soon, and that is now her prevailing expectation ; but 
she contemplates the event with composure and resigna- 
tion. Within a few months she has grown much in de- 
votional feelings, and in longing desires to be wholly 
conformed to the will of Christ. She had formerly some 
doubts about the genuineness of her early conversion, 
but they have all left her ; and, though she feels that in 
her circumstances prolonged life is exceedingly desirable, 
she is quite willing to leave all, at the Saviour's call. 
Praise be to God for his love to her. 

Yours, affectionately, 

A. Judson-. 

March 23. Glad I am that the mail is still open, so 
that I can add that Emily is better. The medicine seems 
really to have taken effect, and the crisis to have passed. 
But, though the deadly pressure is a little removed from 
my heart, I do not venture to indulge very sanguine 
hopes, after what I have seen ; for a few days may pros- 
trate all again. Do remember us in your prayers. I 
feel more than ever that God heareth prayer. 

From this illness Mrs. Judson slowly recovered. In a 
letter to Dr. Gillette, Dr. Judson says : " Emily's health 
is very delicate — her hold on life very precarious. Yet 
she may live on many, many years. She has already 
outlived several whose health was much more robust. 
And while she does live, she will be a blessing to all, 
whether near or remote. I never cease to thank God 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



293 



that I found her, accidentally, as it were, under your 
roof." 

In the month of November, 1849, Dr. Judson's health 
began to fail. A cold, taken one night while assisting 
Mrs. Judson in nursing one of the children who was ill, 
was followed by a prostrating attack of the fever of the 
country, which acted fatally on a frame already weak- 
ened by pulmonary complaints. No words that I could 
give, can paint the illness and the desolation left by hia 
death, in the touching manner of his grief-stricken 
w T idow. I quote her letters to the children in America, 
and one to his sister. 

FROM MRS. JUDSON TO THE CHILDREN IN AMERICA . 

Maulmain, April 11th, 1850. 

My very dear Children: — 

I have painful news to tell you — news that I am sure 
will make your hearts ache ; but I hope our Heavenly 
Father will help you to bear it. Your dear papa is very, 
very ill indeed, so much so that the best judges fear he 
will never be any better. He began to fail about five 
months ago, and has declined so gradually that we were 
not fully aware of his danger until lately ; but within 
a few weeks those who love him have become very much 
alarmed. In January, we went down to Mergui, by the 
steamer, and when we returned, thought he was a little 
better; but he soon failed again. We next spent a 
month at Amherst, but he received little, if any, benefit. 
Next, the doctors pronounced our house — the one you 
used to live in — unhealthy, and we removed to another. 
But all was of no use. Your dear papa continued tc 



294 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



fail, till suddenly, one evening, his muscular strength 
gave way, and he was prostrated on the bed, unable to 
help himself. This occurred about two weeks ago. The 
doctor now became alarmed, and said the only hope for 
him was in a long voyage. It was very hard to think of 
such a thing in his reduced state, particularly as I could 
not go with him ; but after we had wept and prayed over 
it one day and night, we concluded that it was our duty 
to use the only means which God had left us, however 
painful. We immediately engaged his passage aboard a 
French bark bound for the Mauritius ; but before it 
sailed he had become so very low that no one thought it 
right for him to go alone. They therefore called a 
meeting of the mission, and appointed Mr. Ranney, the 
superintendent of the press, to accompany him. It was 
a great relief to me, for he is a very kind man, and 
loves your dear papa very much ; and he will do 
everything that can be done for his comfort. The officers 
of the vessel, too, seemed greatly interested for him, as 
did everyone else. He was carried on board a week ago 
yesterday, in a litter, and placed on a nice, easy cot, 
made purposely for him. I staid on board with him all 
day, and at dark came home to stay with the children. 
The next day I found that the vessel had only dropped 
down a little distance, and so I took a boat and followed. 
I expected this would certainly be the last day with him ; 
but it was not. Friday I went again ; and though he 
did not appear as well as on the previous days, I was 
forced to take, as I then supposed, a final leave of him. 
But when morning came, I felt as though I could not 
live through the day without knowing how he was. So 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



295 



I took a boat again, and reached the vessel about two 
o'clock, P. M. He could not speak, except in whispers, 
but seemed very glad that I came. The natives that I 
had sent to fan him, till he should get out of the river, 
came to me, and begged to have him taken ashore again ; 
and so small was my hope of his recovery, that my heart 
pleaded on their side, though I still thought it duty to do 
as the doctor had ordered. I came away at dark, and 
though his lips moved to say some word of farewell, they 
made no sound. I hope that you, my dear boys, will 
never have cause to know what a heavy heart I bore 
back to my desolate home that night. The vessel got 
out to sea about four o'clock on Monday, and last night 
the natives returned, bringing a letter from Mr. Eanney, 
Your precious papa had revived again, spoke aloud, took 
a little tea and toast, said there was something animating 
in the touch of the sea breeze, and directed Mr. Ranney 
to write to me that he had a strong belief it was the will 
of God to restore him again to health. I feel somewhat 
encouraged, but dare not hope too much. 

And now, my dear boys, it will be three, perhaps four 
long months before we can hear from our loved one 
again ; and we shall all be very anxious. All that we 
can do is to commit him to the care of our Heavenly 
Father, and if we never see him again in this world, 
pray that we may be prepared to meet him in heaven. 

Your dear little brothers and sister enjoy excellent 
hea th. They are so young that they do not understand 
much about their papa, though they sometimes cry when 
I talk to them about him. I shall write to you just as 
quick as I hear from your papa, and wish you to write 



296 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



to me, for I love you very much for his sake, though I 
saw so little of you at Worcester. Give love to Dr. and 
Mrs. Newton, and believe me 

Your most affectionate mamma, 

Emily C. Judson. 

CLOSING SCENES IN DR. JUDSON'S LIFE, COMMUNICATE! 
TO HIS SISTER, BY MRS. JUDSON. 

Matjlmain, September 20th, 1850. 
My dear Sister: 

Last month I could do no more than announce to you 
our painful bereavement, which, though not altogether 
unexpected, will, I very well know, fall upon your heart 
with overwhelming weight. You will find the account 
of your brother's last days on board the Aristide Marie, 
in a letter written by Mr. Ranney, from Mauritius, to 
the secretary of the board ; and I can add nothing to 
it, with the exception of a few unimportant particulars, 
gleaned in conversations with Mr. Ranney and the 
Coringa servant. I grieve that it should be so — that I 
was not permitted to watch beside him during those days 
of terrible suffering ; but the pain which I at first felt is 
gradually yielding to gratitude for the inestimable 
privileges which had previously been granted me. 

There was something exceedingly beautiful in the 
decline of your brother's life — more beautiful than I can 
describe, though the impression will remain with me as 
a sacred legacy, until I go to meet him where suns shall 
never set, and life shall never end. He had been, from 
my first acquaintance with him, an uncommonly spiritual 
Christian, exhibiting his richest graces in the unguarded 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSOBT. 



297 



intercourse of private life ; but during his last year, it 
seemed as though the light of the world oh which he was 
entering, had been sent to brighten his upward pathway. 
Every subject on which we conversed, every book we 
read, every incident that occurred, whether trivial or 
important, had a tendency to suggest some peculiarly 
spiritual train of thought, till it seemed to me that, more 
than ever before, " Christ was all his theme." Something 
of the same nature was also noted in his preaching, to 
which I then had not the privilege of listening. He was 
in the habit, however, of studying his subject for the 
Sabbath, audibly, and in my presence, at which time he 
was frequently so much affected as to weep, and sometimes 
so overwhelmed with the vastness of his conceptions as to 
be obliged to abandon his theme and choose another. My 
own illness at the commencement of the year had brought 
eternity very near to us, and rendered death, the grave, 
and the bright heaven beyond it, familiar subjects of con- 
versation. Gladly would I give you, my dear sister, some 
idea of the share borne by him in those memorable con- 
versations ; but it would be impossible to convey, even 
to those who knew him best, the most distant conception 
of them. I believe he has sometimes been thought elo- 
quent, both in conversation, and in the sacred desk; but 
the fervent, burning eloquence, the deep pathos, the 
touching tenderness, the elevation of thought, and intense 
beauty of expression, which characterized those private 
teachings, were not only beyond what I had ever heard 
before, but such as I felt sure arrested his own attention, 
%nd surprised even himself. About this time he began 
to find unusual satisfaction and enjoyment in his private 



298 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



devotions, and seemed to have new objects of interest 
continually rising in his mind, each of which in turn 
became special subjects of prayer. Among these, one 
of the most prominent was the conversion of his posterity. 
He remarked, that he had always prayed for his children, 
but that of late he had felt impressed with the duty of 
praying for their children and their children's children, 
down to the latest generation. He also prayed most 
fervently that his impressions on this particular subject 
might be transferred to his sons and daughters, and thence 
to their offspring, so that he should ultimately meet a 
long, unbroken line of descendants before the throne of 
God, where all might join together in ascribing everlast- 
ing praises to their Redeemer. 

Another subject, which occupied a large share of his 
attention, was that of brotherly love. You are, perhaps, 
aware that, like all persons of his ardent temperament, 
he was subject to strong attachments and aversions, 
which he sometimes had difficulty in bringing under the 
controlling influence of divine grace. He remarked that 
he had always felt more or less of an affectionate interest 
in his brethren, as brethren, and some of them he had 
loved very dearly for their personal qualities ; but he was 
a.ow aware that he had never placed his standard of love 
high enough. He spoke of them as children of God, 
redeemed by the Saviour's blood, watched over and 
guarded by his love, dear to his heart, honored by him 
in the election, and to be honored hereafter before the 
assembled universe ; and he said it was not sufficient to 
be kind and obliging to such, to abstain from evil speak- 
ing, and make a general mention of them in our prayers, 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



299 



but our attachment to them should be of the most ardent 
and exalted character : it would be so in heaven, and we 
lost immeasurably by not beginning now. "As I have 
loved you, so ought ye also to love one another/' was a 
precept continually in his mind ; and he would often 
murmur, as though unconsciously, " 'As I have loved you' 
— < as I have loved you,' " then burst out with the excla- 
mation, " Oh, the love of Christ ! the love of Christ !" 

His prayers for the mission were marked by an earnest, 
grateful enthusiasm, and in speaking of missionary opera- 
tions in general, his tone was one of elevated triumph, 
almost of exultation ; for he not only felt an unshaken 
confidence in their final success, but would often exclaim, 
"What wonders — Oh, what wonders God has already 
wrought !" 

I remarked that during this year his literary labor, 
which he had never liked, and upon which he had entered 
unwillingly, and from a feeling of necessity, was grow- 
ing more irksome to him ; and he always spoke of it as 
his " heavy work," his " tedious work," " that wearisome 
dictionary," &c, though this feeling led to no relaxation 
of effort. He longed, however, to find some more spi- 
ritual employment, to be engaged in what he considered 
more legitimate missionary labor, and drew delightful 
pictures of the future, when his whole business would be 
but to preach and to pray. 

During all this time I had not observed any failure in 
physical strength ; and though his mental exercises occu- 
pied a large share of my thoughts when alone, it never 
once occurred to me that this might be the brightening 
of the setting sun ; my only feeling was that of pleasure, 



300 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



that one so near to me was becoming so pure and elevated 
in his sentiments, and so lovely and Christ-like in his 
character. In person he had grown somewhat stouter 
than when in America ; his complexion had a healthful 
hue, compared with that of his associates generally ; and 
though by no means a person of uniformly firm health, 
he seemed to possess such vigor and strength of consti- 
tution, that I thought his life as likely to be extended 
twenty years longer, as that of any member of the mis- 
sion. He continued his system of morning exercise, 
commenced when a student at Andover, and was not sat- 
isfied with a common walk on level ground, but always 
chose an up-hill path, and then frequently went bounding 
on his way with all the exuberant activity of boyhood. 

He was of a singularly happy temperament, although 
not of that even cast which never rises above a certain 
level, and is never depressed. Possessing acute sensibil- 
ities, suffering with those who suffered, and entering as 
readily into the joys of the prosperous and happy, he 
was variable in his moods ; but religion formed such an 
essenital element in his character, and his trust in Provi- 
dence was so implicit and habitual, that he was never 
gloomy, and seldom more than momentarily disheartened. 
On the other hand, being accustomed to regard all the 
events of this life, however minute or painful, as ordered 
in wisdom, and tending to one great and glorious end, he 
lived in almost constant obedience to the apostolic injunc- 
tion, " Rejoice evermore!" He often told me that 
although he had endured much personal suffering, and 
passed through many fearful trials in the course of his 
eventful life, a kind Providence had also hedged him 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



301 



round with precious, peculiar blessings, so that his joys 
had far outnumbered his sorrows. 

Towards the close of September of last year, he 
said to me one evening, " What deep cause have we for 
gratitude to God ? Do you believe there are any other 
two persons in the wide world so happy as we are?" 
enumerating, in his own earnest manner, several sources 
of happiness, in which our work as missionaries, and our 
eternal prospects, occupied a prominent position. When 
he had finished his glowing picture, I remarked — I 
scarcely know why, but there was a heavy cloud upon 
my spirits that evening — " We are certainly very happy 
now, but it cannot be so always. I am thinking of the 
time when one of us must stand beside the bed, and see 
the other die." 

"Yes," he said ; "that will be a sad moment; I felt 
it most deeply a little while ago, but now it would not be 
strange if your life were prolonged beyond mine — 
though I should wish, if it were possible, to spare you 
that pain. It is the one left alone who suffers, not the 
one who goes to be with Christ. If it should only be the 
will of God that we might go together, like young James 
and his wife ! But he will order all things well, and we 
can safely trust our future to his hands." 

That same night we were roused from sleep by the 
sudden illness of one of the children. There was an 
unpleasant, chilling dampness in the air, as it came to us 
through the openings in the sloats above the windows, 
which affected your brother very sensibly ; and he soon 
began to shiver so violently that he was obliged to re- 
turn to his couch, where he remained under a warm cov- 



302 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



ering until morning. In the morning he awoke with a 
severe cold, accompanied by some degree of fever ; but as it 
did not seem very serious, and our three children were all 
suffering from a similar cause, we failed to give it any 
especial attention. From that time he was never well, 
though in writing to you before, I think I dated the 
commencement of his illness from the month of Novem- 
ber, when he laid aside his studies. I know that he re- 
garded this attack as trifling ; and yet one evening he 
spent a long time in advising me with regard to my future 
course, if I should be deprived of his guidance, saying 
that it is always wise to be prepared for exigencies of 
this nature. After the month of November, he failed 
gradually, occasionally rallying in such a manner as to 
deceive us all, but at each relapse sinking lower than at 
the previous one, though still full of hope and courage, 
and yielding ground only inch by inch, as compelled by 
the triumphant progress of disease. During some hours 
of every day he suffered intense pain ; but his naturally 
buoyant spirits and uncomplaining disposition, led him 
to speak so lightly of it, that I used sometimes to fear 
that the doctor, though a very skillful man, would be 
fatally deceived. 

As his health declined, his mental exercises at first 
seemed deepened ; and he gave still larger portions of 
his time to prayer, conversing with the utmost freedom 
on his daily progress, and the extent of his self-conquest. 
Just before our trip to Mergui, which took place in Janu- 
ary, he looked up from his pillow one day with sudden 
animation, and said tome earnestly, " I have gained the 
victory at last. I love every one of Christ's redeemed, 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



303 



as I believe he would have me love them — in the same 
manner, though not probably to the same degree as we 
shall love one another in heaven ; and gladly would I 
prefer the meanest of his creatures, who bears his name, 
before myself." This he said in allusion to the text, 
" In honor preferring one another," on which he had fre- 
quently dwelt with great emphasis. After further sim- 
ilar conversation, he concluded, " And now here I lie at 
peace with all the world, and what is better still, at peace 
with my own conscience. I know that I am a miserable 
sinner in the sight of God, with no hope but in the 
blessed Saviour's merits; but I cannot think of any par- 
ticular fault, any peculiarly besetting sin, which it is now 
my duty to correct. Can you tell me of any V 

And truly, from this time no other word would so well 
express his state of feeling as that one of his own choos- 
ing — peace. He had no particular exercises afterwards, 
but remained calm and serene, speaking of himself daily 
as a great sinner, who had been overwhelmed with bene- 
fits, and declaring that he had never in all his life before 
had such delightful views of the unfathomable love and 
infinite condescension of the Saviour as were now daily 
opening before him. " Oh, the love of Christ ! the love 
of Christ !" he would suddenly exclaim, while his eye 
kindled, and the tears chased each other down his 
cheeks ; " we cannot understand it now — but what a 
beautiful study for eternity !" 

After our return from Mergui, the doctor advised a 
still further trial of the effects of sea air and sea bath 
ing ; and we accordingly proceeded to Amherst, where 
we remained nearly a month. This to me was the 



804 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JTJDSON. 



darkest period of his illness — no medical adviser, no 
friend, at hand, and he daily growing weaker and weaker. 
He began to totter in walking, clinging to the furniture 
and walls, when he thought he was unobserved, (for he 
was not willing to acknowledge the extent of his debil- 
ity,) and his wan face was of a ghastly paleness. His 
sufferings too were sometimes fearfully intense, so that, 
i.\ spite of his habitual self-control, his groans would fill 
the house. At other times a kind of lethargy seemed 
to steal over him, and he would sleep almost incessant- 
ly for twenty-four hours, seeming annoyed if he were 
aroused or disturbed. Yet there were portions of the time 
when he was comparatively comfortable, and conversed 
intelligently ; but his mind seemed to revert to former 
scenes, and he tried to amuse me with stories of his boy- 
hood, his college days, his imprisonment in France, and 
his early missionary life. He had a great deal also to say 
on his favorite theme, " the love of Christ;" but his 
strength was too much impaired for any continuous mental 
effort. Even a short prayer, made audibly, exhausted 
him to such a degree that he was obliged to discontinue 
the practice. 

At length I wrote to Maulmain, giving some expres- 
sion of my anxieties and misgivings, and our kind mis- 
sionary friends, who had from the first evinced all the 
tender interest and watchful sympathy of the nearest 
kindred, immediately sent for us — the doctor advising 
a sea voyage. But as there was no vessel in the harbor 
bound for a port sufficiently distant, we thought it best, 
in the mean time, to remove from our old dwelling, which 
had long been condemned as unhealthy, to another mission 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



305 



house, fortunately empty. This change was, at first, 
attended with the most beneficial results ; and our hopes 
revived so much, that we looked forward to the approach- 
ing rainy season for entire restoration. But it lasted 
only a little while ; and then both of us became convinced 
that, though a voyage at sea involved much that wae 
exceedingly painful, it yet presented the only prospect 
of recovery, and could not, therefore, without a breach 
of duty, be neglected. 

" Oh, if it were only the will of God to take me now — 
to let me die here !" he repeated over and over again, 
in a tone of anguish, while we were considering the sub- 
ject. " I cannot, cannot go ! This is almost more than 
I can bear ! Was there ever suffering like our suf- 
fering ?" and the like broken expressions, were contin- 
ually falling from his lips. But he soon gathered more 
strength of purpose ; and after the decision was fairly 
made, he never hesitated for a moment, rather regarding 
the prospect with pleasure. I think the struggle which 
this resolution cost injured him very materially; though 
probably it had no share in bringing about the final result. 
God, who saw the end from the beginning, had counted 
out his days, and they were hastening to a close. Until 
this time he had been able to stand, and to walk slowly 
from room to room ; but as he one evening attempted to 
rise from his chair, he was suddenly deprived of his 
small remnant of muscular strength, and would have 
fallen to the floor but for timely support. 

From that moment his decline was rapid. As he lay 
helplessly upon his couch, and watched the swelling of 
his feet, and other alarming symptoms, he became very 
20 



306 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



anxious to commence his voyage, and I felt equally anx- 
ious to have his wishes gratified. I still hoped he might 
recover ; the doctor said the chances of life and death 
were, in his opinion, equally balanced. And then he al- 
ways loved the sea so dearly ! There was something 
exhilarating to him in the motion of a vessel, and he 
spoke with animation of getting free from the almost 
suffocating atmosphere incident to the hot season, and 
drinking in the fresh sea breezes. . He talked but little 
more, however, than was necessary to indicate his wants ; 
his bodily sufferings being too great to allow of conver- 
sation ; but several times he looked up to me with a bright 
smile, and exclaimed, as heretofore, " Oh, the love of 
Christ ! the love of Christ !" 

I found it difficult to ascertain, from expressions 
casually dropped from time to time, his real opinion with 
regard to his recovery ; but I thought there was some 
reason to doubt whether he was fully aware of his 
critical situation. I did not suppose he had any prepar- 
ation to make at this late hour, and I felt sure that, if 
he should be called ever so unexpectedly, he would not 
enter the presence of his Maker with a ruffled spirit ; 
but I could not bear to have him go away, without know- 
ing how doubtful it was whether our next meeting would 
not be in eternity ; and perhaps too, in my own distress, 
I might still have looked for words of encouragement 
and sympathy, to a source which had never before failed. 

It was late in the night, and I had been performing 
some little sick-room offices, when suddenly he looked up 
to me, and exclaimed, " This will never do ! You are 
killing yourself for me, and I will not permit it. You 



•LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON 



307 



must have some one to relieve you. If I had not been 
made selfish by suffering, I should have insisted upon ft 
long ago." 

He spoke so like himself, with the earnestness of 
health, and in a tone to which my ear had of late been a 
stranger, that for a moment I felt almost bewildered with 
sudden hope. He received my reply to what he had 
said with a half-pitying, half-gratified smile ; but in the 
mean time his expression had changed — the marks of 
excessive debility were again apparent, and I could not 
forbear adding, " It is only a little while, you know." 

" Only a little while," he repeated mournfully ; " this 
separation is a bitter thing, but it does not distress me 
now as it did — I am too weak." " You have no reason 
to be distressed," I answered, "with such glorious pros- 
pects before you. You have often told me it is the one 
left alone who suffers, not the one who goes to be with 
Christ." He gave me a rapid, questioning glance, then 
assumed for several moments an attitude of deep thought. 
Finally, he slowly unclosed his eyes, and fixing them on 
me, said in a calm, earnest tone, "I do not believe I am 
going to die. I think I know why this illness has been 
sent upon me ; I needed it ; I feel that it has done me good ; 
and it is my impression that I shall now recover, and be 
a better and more useful man." 

" Then it is your wish to recover?" I inquired. "If 
it should be the will of God, yes. I should like to com 
plete the dictionary, on which I have bestowed so much 
labor, now that it is so nearly done ; for, though it has 
not been a work that pleased my taste or quite satisfied 
my feelings, I have never underrated its importance. 



808 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



Then after that come all the plans that we have formed. 
Oh, I feel as if I were only just beginning to be pre- 
pared for usefulness !" 

" It is the opinion of most of the mission," I remarked, 
" that you will not recover." " 1 know it is," he replied, 
" and I suppose they think me an old man, and imagine 
it is nothing for one like me to resign a life so full of 
trials. But I am not old — at least in that sense ; you 
know I am not. Oh ! no man ever left this world with 
more inviting prospects, with brighter hopes, or warmer 
feelings — warmer feelings !" he repeated, and burst into 
tears. His face was perfectly placid, even while the 
tears broke away from the closed lids, and rolled, one 
after another, down to the pillow. There was no trace 
of agitation or pain in his manner of weeping, but it was 
evidently the result of acute sensibilities, combined with 
great physical weakness. To some suggestions which I 
ventured to make, he replied, " It is not that — I know 
all that, and feel it in my inmost heart. Lying here 
on my bed, when I could not talk, I have had such views 
of the loving condescension of Christ, and the glories of 
heaven as I believe are seldom granted to mortal man. 
It is not because I shrink from death that I wish to live, 
neither is it because the ties that bind me here, though 
some of them are very sweet, bear any comparison with 
the drawings I at times feel towards heaven ; but a few 
years would not be missed from my eternity of bliss, and 
I can well afford to spare them, both for your sake and 
for the sake of the poor Burmans. I am not tired of 
my work, neither am I tired of the world ; yet, when 
Christ calls me home, I shall go with the gladness of a 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



309 



boy bounding away from his school. Perhaps I feel 
something like the young bride when she contemplates 
resigning the pleasant associations of her childhood for 
a yet dearer home — though only a very little like her, 
for there is no doubt resting on my future, 91 "Then 
death would not take you by surprise," I remarked, "if 
it should come even before you could get on board 
ship?" "0, no," he said, "death will never take me 
by surprise — do not be afraid of that — I feel so strong in 
Christ. He has not led me so tenderly thus far, to 
forsake me at the very gate of heaven. No, no ; I am 
willing to live a few years longer, if it should be so 
ordered ; and if otherwise, I am willing and glad to die 
now. I leave myself entirely in the hands of God, to 
be disposed of according to his holy will." 

The next day some one mentioned, in his presence, 
that the native Christians were greatly opposed to the 
voyage, and that many other persons had a similar feel- 
ing with regard to it. I thought he seemed troubled, 
and after the visitor had withdrawn, I inquired if he still 
felt as when he conversed with me the night previous. 
He replied, "0, yes; that was no evanescent feeling. 
It has been with me, to a greater or less extent, for 
years, and will be with me, I trust, to the end. I am 
ready to go to-day — if it should be the will of God, this 
very hour ; but I am not anxious to die ; at least when 
I am not beside myself with pain." 

"Then why are you so desirous to go to sea? I 
should think it would be a matter of indifference to you." 
"No," he answered quietly, "my judgment tells me it 
would be wrong not to go ; the doctor says criminal. I 



310 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



shall certainly die here ; if I go away, I may possibly 
recover. There is no question with regard to duty in 
such a case ; and I do not like to see any hesitation, even 
though it springs from affection.' ' 

He several times spoke of a burial at sea, and always 
as though the prospect were agreeable. It brought, he 
said, a sense of freedom and expansion, and seemed far 
pleasanter than the confined, dark, narrow grave, to 
which he had committed so many that he loved. And 
he added, that, although his burial-place was a matter of 
no real importance, yet he believed it was not in human 
nature to be altogether without a choice. 

I have already given you an account of the embarka- 
tion, of my visits to him while the vessel remained in the 
river, and of our last, sad, silent parting ; and Mr. Ran- 
ney has finished the picture. You will find, in this 
closing part, some dark shadows, that will give you pain ; 
but you must remember that his present felicity is en- 
hanced by those very sufferings ; and we should regret 
nothing that serves to brighten his crown in glory. I 
ought also to add that I have gained pleasanter impres- 
sions in conversation with Mr. Ranney than from his 
written account ; but it would be difficult to convey them 
to you ; and, as he whom they concern was accustomed 
to say of similar things, " you will learn it all in heaven." 

During the last hour of your sainted brother's life, 
Mr. Ranney bent over him, and held his hand, while 
poor Panapah stood at a little distance, weeping bitterly. 
The table had been spread in the cuddy, as usual, and 
the officers did not know what was passing in the cabin, 
till summoned to dinner. Then they gathered about the 



LnriS OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



311 



door, and watched the closing scene with solemn rever- 
ence. Now — thanks to a merciful God ! — his pains had 
left him ; not a momentary spasm disturbed his placid 
face, nor did the contraction of a muscle denote the least 
degree of suffering ; the agony of death was passed, and 
his wearied spirit was turning to its rest in the bosom of 
the Saviour. From time to time, he pressed the hand 
in which his own was resting, his clasp losing in force at 
each successive pressure ; while his shortened breath — 
though there was no struggle, no gasping, as if it came 
and went with difficulty — gradually grew softer and 
fainter, until it died upon the air — and he was gone. 
Mr. Ranney closed the eyes, and composed the passive 
limbs ; the ship's officers stole softly from the door, and 
the neglected meal was left upon the board untasted. 

They lowered him to his ocean grave without a prayer. 
His freed spirit had soared above the reach of earthly 
intercession, and to the foreigners who stood around it 
would have been a senseless form. And there they left 
him in his unquiet sepulchre ; but it matters little, for 
we know that while the unconscious clay is " drifting on 
the shifting currents of the restless main," nothing can 
disturb the hallowed rest of the immortal spirit. Neither 
could he have a more fitting monument than the blue 
waves which visit every coast ; for his warm sympathies 
went forth to the ends of the earth, and included the 
whole family of man. It is all as God would have it, 
and our duty is but to bend meekly to his will, and wait, 
in faith and patience, till we also shall be summoned 
home. 



312 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSOW. 



After her husband's death, Mrs. Judson wished to re- 
main in India, where she was so much beloved and so 
useful, but the delicacy of her health was too great to 
permit this. She returned to the United States in 1851, 
where she took a home in the village of Hamilton for 
her parents, herself, the children of Mrs. Sarah Judson, 
and her own "bird." 

The fatal seeds of consumption were, however, sown 
in her delicate frame, and three years after her return to 
America, she died. This short space of time was occu- 
pied by the noble woman, in advancing, both by her la- 
bors with her pen and her personal influence, the mis- 
sionary cause in the United States. She aided Dr. Way- 
land, materially, in his Life of Dr. Judson, and was 
occupied upon an abridgement of this work when she 
was summoned to her eternal home, closing a life of love, 
usefulness, and piety, with a peaceful, happy death, in 
June 1854. 

I quote here some of the exquisite poetry, which, 
written by her, places her high in the ranks of poetesses 
of America. They show too, the high religious purity of 
her mind, her loving reliance upon her husband, and 
tender, maternal care for her step-children : 

PRAYER FOR DEAR PAPA. 

Poor and needy little children, 

Saviour, God, we come to thee, 
For our hearts are full of sorrow, 

And no other hope have we. 
Out upon the restless ocean 

There is one we dearly love, — 
Fold him in thine arms of pity, 

Spread thy guardian wings above. 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 

When the winds are howling round him, 

When the angry waves are high, 
When black, heavy, midnight shadows 

On his trackless pathway lie, 
Guide and guard him, blessed Saviour, 

Bid the hurrying tempests stay ; 
Plant thy foot upon the waters, 

Send thy smile to light his way. 

When he lies, all pale, and suffering, 

Stretched upon his narrow bed, 
With no loving face bent o'er him, 

No soft hand about his head, 
Oh, let kind and pitying angels 

Their bright forms around him bow ; 
Let them kiss his heavy eyelids, 

Let them fan his fevered brow. 

Poor and needy little children, 

Still we raise our cry to Thee ; 
We have nestled in his bosom, 

We have sported on his knee ; 
Dearly, dearly do we love him, 

— We who on his breast have Iain- 
Pity now our desolation ! 

Bring him back to us again ! 

If it please thee, Heavenly Father, 

We would see him come once more 
With his olden step of vigor, 

With the love-lit smile he wore ; 
But, if we must tread life's valley 

Orphaned, guideless, and alone, 
Let us lose not, 'mid the shadows, 

His dear footprints to Thy throne. 

Maulmain, April, 1850. 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



SWEET MOTHER. 

The wild, south-west Monsoon has risen, 
With broad, gray wings of gloom, 

While here, from out my dreary prison, 
I look, as from a tomb — Alas ! 
My heart another tomb. 

Upon the low thatched roof, the rain, 

With ceaseless patter, falls; 
My choicest treasures bear its stain — 

Mould gathers on the walls — Would heaven 

'Twere only on the walls ! 

Sweet mother ! I am here alone, 

In sorrow and in pain ; 
The sunshine from my heart has flown, 

It feels the driving rain — Ah, me ! 

The chill, and mould, and rain. 

Four laggard months have wheeled their round 

Since love upon it smiled ; 
And everything of earth has frowned 

On thy poor, stricken child — Sweet friend, 

Thy weary, suffering child. 

I'd watched my loved one night and day, 
Scarce breathing when he slept ; 

And as my hopes were swept away, 
Fd on his bosom wept — God ! 
How had I prayed and wept ! 

They bore him from me to the ship, 

As bearers bear the dead ; 
I kissed his speechless, quivering lip, 

And left him on his bed — Alas ! 

It seemed a coffin-bed ! 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 

When from my gentle sister's tomb, 

In all our grief, we came, 
Kememberest tbou her vacant room ? 

Well, his was just the same, that day, 

The very, very same. 

Then, mother, little Charley came — 

Our beautiful, fair boy, 
With my own father's cherished name — 

But oh, he brought no joy ! — My child 

Brought mourning and no joy. 

His little grave I cannot see, 

Though weary months have sped 

Since pitying lips bent over me 

And whispered, " He is dead." — Alas ! 
'Tis dreadful to be dead ! 

I do not mean for one like me, 

— So weary, worn, and weak, 
Death's shadowy paleness seems to be, 

Even now, upon my cheek — his seal 

On form, and brow, and cheek. 

But for a bright-winged bird like him 

To hush his joyous song, 
And, prisoned in a coffin dim, 

Join death's pale, phantom throng— My hoy 

To join that grisly throng ! 

Oh, mother, I can scarcely bear 

To think of this to-day ! 
It was so exquisitely fair, 

— That little form of clay— my heart 

Still lingers by his clay. 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



And when for one loved far, far more, 
Come thickly, gathering tears ; 

My star of faith is clouded o'er, 

I sink beneath my fears — sweet friend, 
My heavy weight of fears. 

Oh, should he not return to me, 
Drear, drear must be life's night ! 

And, mother, I can almost see, 

Even now, the gathering blight — my soul 
Faints, stricken by the blight. 

Oh, but to feel thy fond arms twine 

Around me once again ! 
It almost seems those lips of thine 

Might kiss away the pain — might sooth© 

This dull, cold, heavy pain. 

But, gentle mother, through life's storms 

I may not lean on thee, 
For helpless, cowering little forms 

Cling, trustingly, to me — Poor babes ! 

To have no guide but me ! 

With weary foot, and broken wing, 

With bleeding heart, and sore, 
Thy dove looks backward, sorrowing, 

But seeks the ark no more — thy breast 

Seeks never, never more. 

Sweet mother, for this wanderer pray 
That loftier faith be given ; 

Her broken reeds all swept away, 

That she may lean on heaven — her soul 
Grow strong on Christ and heaven. 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



317 



All fearfully, all tearfully, 

Alone and sorrowing, 
My dim eye lifted to the sky, 

Fast to the cross I cling — Christ ! 

To thy dear cross I cling. 
Maulmain, August Sth, 1850. 

LINES WRITTEN OFF ST. HELENA. 

Blow softly, gales ! a tender sigh 

Is flung upon your wing ; 
Lose not the treasure as ye fly, 
Bear it where love and beauty lie 

Silent and withering. 

Flow gently, waves ! a tear is laid 

Upon your heaving breast ; 
Leave it within yon dark rock's shade, 
Or weave it in an iris braid 

To crown the Christian's rest. 

Bloom, ocean isle, lone ocean isle ! 

Thou keep'st a jewel rare ; 
Let rugged rock and dark defile 
Above the slumbering stranger smile 

And deck her couch with care. 

Weep, ye bereaved ! a dearer head 

Ne'er left the pillowing breast ; 
The good, the pure, the lovely fled 
When mingling with the shadowy dead 
She meekly went to rest. 

Mourn, Burmah, mourn ! a bow which spanned 

Thy cloud has passed away ; 
A flower has withered on thy sand, 
A pitying spirit left thy strand, 

A saint has ceased to pray. 



318 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 



Angels rejoice, another string 

Has caught the strains above ; 
Rejoice, rejoice ! a new-fledged wing 
Around the throne is hovering 
In sweet, glad, wondering love. 

Blow, blow, ye gales ! wild billows roll ! 

Unfurl the canvas wide ! 
Oh ! where she labored lies our goal : 
Weak, timid, frail, yet would my soul 

Fain be to hers allied. 
Ship Fanueil Hall, Sept., 1846, 



LINES 

Addressed to a missionary friend in Burmah on the death of 
her little boy, thirteen months old, in which, allusion is made 
to the previous death of his little brother. 

A mound is in the graveyard, 

A short and narrow bed ; 
No grass is growing on it, 

And no marble at its head : 
Ye may go and weep beside it, 

Ye may kneel and kiss the sod, 
But ye' 11 find no balm for sorrow 

In the cold and silent clod. 

There is anguish in the household, 

It is desolate and lone, 
For a fondly cherished nursling 

From the parent nest has flown ; 
A little form is missing ; 
* A heart has ceased to beat ; 

And the chain of love lies shattered 

At the desolator's feet. 



LIFE OF EMILY C. JUDSON. 

Remove the empty cradle, 

His clothing put away, 
And all his little playthings 

With your choicest treasures lay 
Strive not to check the tear drops 

That fall like summer rain, 
For the sun of hope shines thro' them 

Ye shall see his face again, 

Oh ! think where rests your darling— 

Not in his cradle-bed ; 
Not in the distant graveyard 

With the still and mouldering dead J 
But in a heavenly mansion, 

Upon the Saviour's breast, 
With his brother's arms about him 

He takes his sainted rest. 

He has put on robes of glory 

For the little robes ye wrought ; 
And he fingers golden harp-stringa 

For the toys his sisters brought. 
Oh, weep ! but with rejoicing ; 

A heart gem have ye given, 
And behold its glorious setting 

In the diadem of heaven. 




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